The Flames of Chaos
by Anaklusmos14
Summary: One event can send a life spiraling in a completely new direction. A single action sending a soul hurdling towards a new destiny. Percy Jackson thought he had his life figured out until one event sent him barreling towards a different fate. Now an agent of chaos threatens both his old and new life and he must find a way to bring order to a world being led into a state of anarchy.
1. Catalyst

_**A.N: This is a story I originally adopted from Anonemuss14… But when Blueper asked for it, it went to him. Now Anonemuss14 has asked that I adopt it once again since Blueper seems to be MIA. Despite the number of stories I already have open, I won't let one of my favorites be abandoned. So I will be posting the original author's chapters sporadically until I am caught up. I will do my best to do the story justice but the bar is set pretty high by the two original owners of the story.**_

_**Chapters 1-15 belong to Anonemuss14**_

**_Part One: The Fall. _**

**_Chapter 1: Revenge_**

Revenge is a strange thing. At times you hate it, but at others it is the most wonderful thing in the world. This was going to be one of those times.

"Are you sure you wish to go through with this?" Dr. Claymore asked. I owed much to him, his company and advice had been much appreciated these last few months, but his attempts to dissuade me were futile.

"Yes, Doctor," I said. "I've waited too long for this. I shall not wait any longer." Doctor Claymore look disappointed about my answer, but not surprised. He sighed and shook his head.

"I don't agree with your choice," he said solemnly.

"I know," I replied.

"But, I will not stop you," he continued. "Nor will I assist you in your plans." I nodded slowly.

"I will not require your aid in this, Doctor," I said. A weight was lifted from my heart at the Doctor's words. I knew that once everything was dealt with, things would return to business as usual. Beside, it wasn't as if I planned murder, only justice. Revenge.

"You are certain it can be done?" Doctor Claymore asked.

"Yes, it will be difficult, but it can be done," I responded. The Doctor had asked this question dozens of times already, and in return I offered the same response each time. My words were, in reality, euphemistic. The acts to be committed would be more than "difficult". If precautions were not taken, dying would be the least of my worries. I could not say this to the Doctor, of course. Though he technically had no power over me, his attempts to dissuade me would increase tenfold if he discovered the danger of my plans and I would eventually give in.

Doctor Claymore sighed again. "Let us get this over with," he said. "The sooner that you settle your vendetta, the sooner we can get to Rome."

"Too true, Doctor," I agreed. "We've wasted enough time already." I began to make my way towards the front of the bus with Doctor Claymore at my heels. The cacophony of noise that was Manhattan, New York greeted me as I disembarked the civilian transport. I glanced distastefully at the Empire State Building, or more accurately, at the mountain five hundred stories above it. The thick layer of Mist that surrounded the home of the gods did nothing to hide it from my sight. For a moment, the old dream of tearing it down brick by brick came to mind. I quickly pushed from my mind. I shouldn't dwell on the past. I smiled bitterly at the irony of the thought. Here I was, wishing to move forward with my life while plotting revenge on an enemy from the exact time I wish to forget. Doctor Claymore noticed me staring at the sky above the colossal building.

"Can you see it from here?" he asked. I knew that he wished to see it for himself, but he could not. Being a mistform gave him no more immunity to the Mist than anything else. His mind was open to more possibilities than before, so he could see further into the Mist than most mortals, but something as heavily protected as Olympus was something entirely different.

"Yes," I said at last. "I went up there once. When the war was over, all the half-bloods were brought into the city for the celebration of 'victory'." I spat out the last word in disgust.

"Alabaster," Doctor Claymore said softly. He put a hand on my shoulder. I shook it off.

"I'm fine, Doctor," I assured him. "Let us go." We made our way through the city at what seemed like a snail's pace. While we were going at a fairly average pace, the anxiety of what I was to do was finally catching up with me, it seemed. We left Manhattan via the Queens-Midtown Tunnel. I hadn't been a part of the assault force for this area, but I had two brothers and a sister who had died in the initial struggle with the Hunters of Artemis. I harboured some resentment to them for this fact, but no more than any other half-blood who fought in the name of the gods. History remembers the leaders while the soldiers fade into the murkiness of human memory. In any war, one will associate a faction by its leader rather than their underlings. In World War II, history remembers Hitler, Stalin, Churchill, Eisenhower, and Mussolini, while the general populace of the world think of the countless soldiers in the conflict as just that: soldiers; nameless people who fought and died for a cause. Monuments are erected in their honor, to commemorate their sacrifice, but only their own families carry on the only true memories of their actions. And as Churchill said, "History is written by the visitor," the gods won, so their propaganda will be what people will remember. We had lost, so history remembered us as those that went against the higher power, and were crushed underfoot like the rebels we were. Not revolutionaries, but rebels; that is how history would remember us.

So lost in my own thoughts was I, that I didn't notice that we had made it to our destination until Doctor Claymore put his hand on my shoulder. My head snapped up and gazed at the tall pine tree that stood as a lone sentinel atop Half-Blood Hill. I glanced at the Doctor and felt the momentary spark of reconsideration. I quelled this feeling immediately. I had come to far to lose my nerve now.

"It is time, Doctor," I said as I withdrew a blank card from my pocket. Doctor Claymore looked at it distastefully. He always hated being confined within the magical object.

"Good luck, Alabaster," the Doctor said as his body faded into the Mist and his form appeared on the face of the card. I tucked the card away for safekeeping. I muttered a spell and felt the Mist swirl around me and alter my appearance. When I glanced down at my body, I was a young boy of twelve years old. My appearance was altered so that my siblings wouldn't recognize me and I had numerous protective runes on the insides of my clothes to prevent the gods from finding me. I drew another mistform card from my pocket and a satyr appeared by my side. The mistform began to walk up the hill and I followed it as I put an expression of awe, wonderment, and just a bit of anxiety on my face. In truth, I felt only revulsion as I returned to this place. It was a symbol of the gods' oppression. They go out into the world and impregnate mortals with children, which they either abandon or confine to this place to amuse them with quests that they couldn't be bothered to do themselves. Slay a monster, steal an object, fight a war, it made so little difference to them. They would send their children to their deaths for their own amusement; Divine Mafia indeed.

"Hello, who are you exactly?" it was Chiron. I had no ill will towards him. He had been kind to us here at camp, but I would not allow him to ruin my plans. I willed them Mist around him and saw his expression change to one of confusion to panic before settling on his usual expression of the knowing and kind mentor.

"Welcome back, Fen," he said to the satyr as though they were old friends. "I assume your mission was a success." He glanced towards me and smiled. I smiled back weakly, giving the impression of nervousness. It wasn't entirely fraud.

"Hi, I'm Nicholas Claymore," I said nervously.

"Welcome to Camp Half-Blood, Nicholas," Chiron said. "I trust Fen filled you in on this place and who you are." I nodded.

"A little bit," I said. "Is it true that my father is a god?" A brother of mine had said something similar to these words when he arrived here. He had been on _The Princess Andromeda _when _he_ destroyed it. Chiron chuckled.

"Yes, he is and soon you will meet all of your siblings," he said with a smile on his face. Only by looking closely could one discern that his eyes were a slight milky white. I only saw it because I knew it was there. Fen whispered something in Chiron's ear.

"So Apollo claimed you on the trip here," Chiron mused. "Well, that seems a bit strange. Usually a half-blood isn't claimed until they are within the boundaries of camp." I risked the use of a bit more Mist. Chiron remained still for several seconds before shrugging. "Oh well, there's a first time for everything. Why don't you go introduce yourself to your new siblings?" I nodded and walked towards the golden cabin. Behind me, Chiron walked back to the Big House, Fen was gone.

Will gave me a tour of the camp, but I neither needed, nor wanted one. The only place I found mildly interesting was the cabin to Hecate. I had been banished before it was finished and didn't know what it was like. I saw countless runes inscribed on its walls and columns, but the were only there for appearance and had no magical power. This fact saddened me, I had expected more from my siblings. 'Lou is probably in charge,' I thought as I passed the cabin.

I was following along, tuning out his words until we came to the arena. He told me that _he _was the sword instructor here and that _he_ would be teaching me if I chose to learn. I pretended to act excited, but on the inside I was going through me plan in my head. I pictured what it would be like once the scales were balanced; once I had finally brought justice to my fallen siblings. Will hurried on with the tour and it was dinnertime by when we were finally done.

My earlier suspicions were proven correct as I watched my younger sister, Lou Ellen escort our siblings to the Dining Pavilion for dinner. I sat at the Apollo table and, after grudgingly sacrificing to the gods, sat down to pick at the food. My attention alternated between two locations: the Hecate table, and the Poseidon table. Its sole occupant had either been out in the lake training the campers in the art of naval combat, or in the sword arena. This was the first time I had seen him in a year, and all of my hatred resurfaced. Part of me wanted to run over there and kill him, pay him back for all he had done. But, the rational part of me remembered my plan. I had to be patient.

'Soon, Perseus Jackson, you will get what you have coming to you, and I will finally get my revenge,' I thought.


	2. Restlessness

**Ch. 2**

Though normal is a word rarely associated to demigods; that seemed to be the order of the day since the end of last summer. No large gathering of monsters, no surprise visits from gods, the Titans' defeat seemed to have taken most of our world's dangers with it. I can't say that I missed having to fight for my life every other day, but I had grown so used to it over the past few years that it was strange to think that it was all over.

I spent my days training new half-bloods, of which we kept getting more of day in and day out, alongside the veterans of the war. The camp grew; Olympus was rebuilt under the guidance of my lovely girlfriend, Annabeth Chase, and it had been months since a half-blood had died. Life seemed perfect, and that is what worried me. Call me paranoid, but if something seemed too good to be true, then it probably was. For better or worse, my busy schedule didn't allow me time to dwell on those thoughts. As head swordsmanship instructor, I was in the arena from dawn until dusk teaching the new campers how to use a sword properly.

I wasn't bitter about this job; I knew that I was saving their lives by helping them take care of themselves. But, part of me felt like my life was entering a rut. I used to wake up every day wondering whether it would be my last. It's actually a pretty wise policy to adopt for someone like me, but now I wake up and I can see my day laid out before me. I can actually go through a day without some monster trying to kill me, or some prophecy foretelling the end of the world. It was different to say the least.

I pushed these thoughts out of my mind as I entered the arena. My first group of the new day was comprised of rookie campers and one-year veterans. There was one kid, a son of Nike, named Shawn. He was an odd kid, orphaned from birth and constantly moving from city to city as monsters pursued him. It was a miracle that he made it to camp all by himself. He was entering his third year at camp and, to be completely honest, I thought of him as my apprentice or something. He was young, but he could handle a sword better than most of the other campers. Only a few of us, all veterans of the latest war, could beat him in combat. Even less could do it with any kind of ease. Among them were Annabeth and a couple of her siblings, Clarisse, Thalia when she was here, and me.

Chiron and I had noticed Shawn's talent almost at the same time, and Chiron had appointed me to train him. I agreed because, despite my track record for cheating death, I wouldn't live forever. I guess you could say that I saw Shawn as my replacement. It was a lot to put on him, but he had it in him. I just knew it.

"Alright then, let us begin," I said to the campers before me. "Pair up and use what I've taught you to beat your opponent. Remember, if you have an advantage, don't hesitate to use it." I stood back and watched the campers find their friends and begin to hack and slash at each other with dulled practice swords. They weighed and felt exactly like the weapons they would entrust their lives to one day, but in the meantime, one wouldn't have to worry about seriously maiming the other person. I noticed that one camper didn't have a partner. Nobody was brave enough to fight him.

"Shawn," I called. "You're with me." The son of Nike grinned at me. We both knew I was the only one here who provided any kind of challenge to him. We walked off to an open area of the arena and drew our weapons. I uncapped Riptide; I was skilled enough that I could avoid killing Shawn, and Shawn unsheathed his sword. His sword was pretty standard issue: celestial bronze, double edged, roughly 1 meter in length, leaf-shaped blade, but Shawn made it special. He called it Νίκη, in honor of his mother. We stood facing each other, sizing each other up, for several minutes. Then, Shawn moved. He pretended to jump to the left, but leapt to the right as I turned to anticipate the strike. His sword came up from below and I flipped Riptide into a reversed grip to block the strike. I didn't have to do anything really. The Curse of Achilles made me pretty much invincible, but the campers weren't and I couldn't teach them to stay alive by taking every attack head on, or worse, follow in my footsteps.

Shawn leapt back as I swiped at him with Riptide and then he lunged forward again. I parried his strike and countered. He blocked my next strikes and held his ground. He made a mistake when I brought my sword down in a hammer blow. His attention went up while I knocked his legs out from under him. He landed on the ground, but immediately rolled to his right and jumped back to his feet. Now it was his turn to attack; he tried to overwhelm me with speed by slashing at me from every direction, but his movements were becoming predictable. I was blocking and deflecting his strikes too easily. Finally, he changed. It was hardly noticeable, but I noticed Shawn's shift in pattern. It would have worked if I hadn't been expecting. I had used a similar trick on him during our first dual. Attack in a similar pattern again and again until the opponent becomes so used to it that they're caught completely off guard by any deviation. I reacted accordingly, and I disarmed him using the technique Luke had taught me what seemed like lifetimes ago. I moved my sword point to Shawn's throat and waited. Shawn sighed before raising his hands in surrender.

"You win again, Percy," he said. He was clearly disappointed, but he took his defeat well and didn't complain.

"Don't worry about it," I replied. "You're getting better. It won't be long before things are the other way around and you have your sword to my throat." He smiled at my words.

"Yeah right," he said. "This is only my third year. I'm nowhere near as good as you." I raised an eyebrow.

"This is only my fifth year, Shawn," I replied. "I might have more experience, but you have more pure skill than I had or could have ever hoped to have at your age." He shrugged.

"Whatever, you still won," he said flippantly.

"Are you just going to let me?" I challenged. Shawn smiled and couldn't resist the taking the bait.

"Just you wait, Percy," he said confidently. "I'm going to train harder than ever to beat you now. You can't win forever." His words meant more to me than he realized.

'I hope you do beat me, Shawn,' I thought. 'I _won't _win forever. I need you to be ready to replace me. Whenever that will be.' I didn't say this to Shawn. I couldn't drop that weight on him. He was only fourteen after all.

"Alright, don't let it go to your head, hotshot," I said. "You haven't won yet." He tried to look offended by my words, but his smile couldn't be contained.

He helped me train the other campers for the rest of the time before going to his next lesson. The day progressed like every other day, training, lunch, free time, which meant I got to leave the arena and take care of my own lessons, more training, dinner, campfire, and lights out. To make matters worse, this was one of those days where Annabeth was up on Olympus all day and wouldn't be back until tomorrow at the earliest. Though my life didn't _completely_ revolve around her, a large portion of it did. I still had my other friends like Grover, Katie, the Stoll brothers, arguably Clarisse, Rachel, Will, Jake, and several others; but Annabeth was my closest friend aside from being my girlfriend. I was allowed to take Wednesdays and Sundays off to visit her on Olympus, but she was usually so involved in her work that our time together didn't feel real.

That's not to say we were distant from each other, quite the opposite in fact but we were both very busy when at camp and we didn't exactly have anywhere in the mortal world to go. We just managed in any way we could. At least she had experienced this before. Camp Half-Blood had been in a state of peace and harmony in the years before the Second Titanomachy, before I had come here. I had never truly known the camp to be peaceful. I recalled my words from last summer.

"Wouldn't be Camp Half-Blood if it was peaceful," I had said. I had been joking at the time, but now I realized that there was at least some truth to the words.

"So, how's your day been?" Grover asked at the campfire.

"You know, same old, same old," I replied dryly. Grover knew better than most my restlessness. Our empathy link held spoke better than words.

"It has been a bit different than the last four years, hasn't it?" he said. "But, I'm enjoying the peace, Percy. I still have plenty to do, what with being on the council and everything."

"Yeah, but you get to be out there," I said. "You go and help save demigods, protect nature, do something. I'm here doing the same thing day after day."

"I don't know, Percy," he said. "Maybe you could ask Chiron for a quest or something." I actually liked that idea, but I didn't think there would be anything-worthwhile doing in the mortal world; or, at least not anything that warranted my interference.

"Maybe," I replied skeptically. "I guess I could ask him."

"It couldn't hurt anything," he pointed out. Our conversation ended there.

The next day, I woke up began the cycle over again. It wasn't until lunch that I was able to talk to Chiron. He was in the Big House reading _The Iliad_. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't give it much attention.

"Chiron," I said. My mentor jumped a little, he looked up and I saw a look of concern and confusion before he masked it behind a smile.

"Percy, how can I help you, my boy?" I hesitated before continuing.

"Well, I was wondering if there were any quests that needed to be done," I said bluntly. Chiron smiled at my request.

"So you've reached that point, eh?" he asked. "The point where a hero who lived in war finds peace."

"I guess you could say that," I responded.

"You know, most heroes experience this at some time or another," he said. "In times of war, they long for peace. But, in times of peace, they long for war. This has been the case for millennia."

"So, is there a quest?" I asked. "I don't want another war, but I feel… I don't know, restrained." Chiron nodded.

"It is your father in you," he said. "The sea is always shifting, always changing. As such, it is in your nature to change as well. In any case, yes, there is something that you could do."

"What is it?" I asked. I felt a small sense of excitement. Even if it were only a menial task, anything would be better than the monotony I went through now.

"There is a half-blood in California," Chiron began. "A satyr has been watching her for a few weeks now, but also detects the presence of a monster in the area."

"So, I'm to go and aid the satyr in rescuing the half-blood?" I clarified. Chiron nodded.

"Yes, but be cautious," he warned. "The satyr reports that the scent of the monster is strong."

"Don't worry, Chiron," I said confidently. "I'm sure I can handle it." Chiron smiled at my confidence.

"I'm sure you can, my boy," he said. "But, many of my former have said the same, and I have had similar thoughts before." His words were clear. Everything was at the mercy of the Fates. If they will it to be, so it would.

"When do I leave?" I asked.

"Tomorrow," Chiron replied. "I suggest you prepare for the journey. I'll have Clarisse fill in for you today." I nodded my thanks and returned to my cabin to prepare for the westward journey.

**A.N: This chapter is the work of Anonemuss14 and her alone. But going forward, I'm going to add to the story where I see it. This is the request of the original author and I have to say it will help writing later if the story has more of my own feel to it. Not saying all chapters will be different, just in places where I feel the story could be added to. Her work was one of my favorites but her style and mine are not the same. **

**And to answer a review wondering what sporadic updates meant… Honestly, just when I feel like it. I'm currently halfway done with the next chapter of Legacy of Asgard but I wanted to get another chapter of this fic up. So it could be another chapter tomorrow or in a week. Whenever I get the urge to post one.**


	3. Cause

Ch. 3

(Percy POV)

I set out from camp at around 8 o'clock the next morning. Argus drove me to the bus station in Manhattan, but that was the farthest he was permitted to go. He nodded to me, as if to wish me luck, and I nodded back. I only had to wait a few minutes for the bus to arrive, and when it did I claimed a seat in the back. My past quests had taught me to keep everything in my line of sight, especially on vehicles. I reached into my pocket and felt Riptide in its pen form; holding the object comforted me for some reason. I went over the list of supplies I had brought in my head: Riptide, Drachmas, mortal cash, nectar, ambrosia, and three days' worth of ham sandwiches. I was as ready as I'd ever be.

I was entering the fourth hour of the unimaginably dull and uncomfortable bus ride when I decided, somewhat against my better judgment, to sleep to pass the time. Though it was difficult, I managed to get into a semi-comfortable position in the seat of the bus. I fell asleep pretty quickly after that.

Unfortunately, I had a dream. In the dream, I was standing in a house. It was sparsely furnished with the primary color being gray and few personal items, such as: pictures, books, or even electronics, could be seen. I looked out the window and saw the Bay Area of San Francisco. I didn't know what to do, so I just stood there for several minutes. My patience was running out and I was about to start searching around when someone walked in the front door. It was a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties with dark hair and light blue eyes. He walked in with a woman who looked to be a bit younger than him with light brown hair and green eyes. They were talking cheerfully about their day.

"That place was really nice," the man said. "We need to thank Warren for recommending it."

"I'll let him know the next time I see him," the woman replied. "Maybe we should—"

The woman ceased talking abruptly as a young girl entered the room. She was young, maybe seven or eight. She had long black hair and pale skin, but the most noticeable feature about her was her silvery eyes. Despite her age, the look she gave the man and woman was analyzing and cold.

"Where have you been?" she asked bluntly. The couple looked nervous, like teenagers that were caught on a secret date. Suffice to say, the situation seemed somewhat reversed.

"Um…hi, Ari," the man said tentatively. "How was your day?" The girl, Ari, narrowed her eyes at him.

"Why is she here?" she asked, indicating the woman.

"Well, we've talked about this," the man said. "Maria is going to be your new mom." Ari's eyes darkened.

"I don't want a new mom," she said in an icily calm voice. "I already have a mom."

"But, Ari, your mom left us," the man said with his composure quickly degrading. "Wouldn't you like to have a real mother?" Ari's calm expression broke into anger and her eyes became black.

"I. Don't. Want. A. New. Mom!" She said furiously and took a step towards the adults. I looked out the window and saw a massive storm forming. The water in the bay was no longer calm, but like what one would only see during a hurricane. Clouds had gathered and cast a shadow on the area with the wind howling through the streets ferociously. I could feel small tremors running through the ground. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

"Ari, please stop," the man pleaded. Surprisingly, she did. Ari's eyes returned to their previous state and everything outside returned to normal. Without a word, Ari turned and left the room. I heard her walk up some stairs and close a door.

"This can't keep happening, Jonathon," Maria said.

"I'm sorry, but what am I supposed to do about it?" Jonathon asked.

"I don't know, but this isn't normal," she said. "I love you, but I can't live with your daughter."

"I'll… I'll do something," Jonathon said. "I could send her to a boarding school, or something." Maria looked happier.

"Thank you."

The dream ended and I woke up on the bus.

The next day was a lot like the first. I managed to skip from bus to bus as I neared San Francisco. Somehow, I reached the city without incident early on the third day. My first job was to locate the satyr in charge of protecting her. Chiron had said his name Rowan, and that he should be expecting me. I didn't know if I should try searching for him, but I didn't want to. San Francisco is a big city.

"You're Percy?" a voice behind me asked. I turned to see a man with green eyes, a brown goatee, and baggy pants standing behind me. He looked tired and scared.

"Yes, and you're Rowan?" I asked. Rowan nodded.

"I take you're here about Ari?" his question surprised me. It was obvious that the girl in my dream was a half-blood of some kind, but I didn't think I'd be sent to retrieve her. Then again, it made sense because of her power.

"A little girl?" I asked. "With dark hair, pale skin, and silver eyes?" Rowan was nodding slowly with every word.

"Did Chiron tell you anything about her?" he asked. I shook my head.

"No, I actually had an odd dream about her," I informed him. He looked troubled at this recent development.

"What happened?" he asked. I filled him in on the details.

"You need to take her," he said gravely. "I can't… I can't take much more of this."

"More of what?" His words were akin to what Maria had said in my dream.

"Protecting her," he said. "It's a full time job. Her scent is unnaturally strong, so monsters swarm her all the time. I have to take time away from protecting other half-bloods. Not to mention that she's, shall we say, a little bit off."

"What does that mean?" I asked. "How is she 'off'?"

"For one, I can't tell who her godly parent is," Rowan explained. "If not for the fact that her father was mortal, I'd say that she was a daughter of Zeus or Poseidon. None of the minor gods could be powerful enough to be her parent, but none of the female Olympians fit either. Artemis, Hera, and Hestia are out, and it couldn't be Demeter or Aphrodite."

"So that leaves Athena," I said. Rowan was shaking his head.

"But that doesn't make sense either," he said, his voice was starting to become hysterical. "Athena doesn't possess the amount of power Ari has. The best I can come up with is that Athena, being Zeus' daughter, has the tiniest amount of his power and that it somehow transferred over to Ari. It doesn't make sense, but everything else is even crazier."

"Okay, calm down," I said. "Let's start from the beginning. Is there anything about her that I should know about?" Rowan took several deep breaths before speaking again.

"Her full name is Arianna Veil. She's seven years old and lives with her dad, Jonathon Veil," he said. "For most of her life, it was just her and her dad, but recently this new woman, Maria, has started going out with her dad. Ari hasn't taken too kindly to it and things have gotten… bad around here."

"She caused a storm the other day," I said.

"Yeah, and that was a weak one," Rowan said. "You have no idea…"

"Can you take me to her?" I asked. Rowan nodded and walked off into the city.

Half an hour later, we stood before the building that could only be Ari's house. The outside was a lot like the inside, barren and gray.

"I need to go," Rowan said. "There are a lot of half-bloods that need protection in the city. I trust you can get her to camp?"

"Yeah, I'll handle it," I said. 'Thanks for your help, Rowan."

"Don't thank me, Percy," he said. "Never before have I ever considered abandoning a half-blood, but this girl… good luck."

His words didn't inspire confidence, but it was too late to back out. I walked up to the front door and knocked twice. Almost immediately, the door swung open and Maria looked out.

"Hello?" she asked. "Who are you?"

"My name is Percy Jackson," I said. "May I come in?" she didn't look eager to let a stranger into her home, but she opened the door a little bit wider and stepped back.

"How can I help you?" she asked. Her tone made it seem more forced than willing.

"Actually, I might be able to help you," I said, she looked confused. "I understand that there is a girl here named Ari."

"What about her?" Maria now looked somewhere between angry and scared.

"She's special, but she's also in danger here," I said. "I can take her somewhere safer." She looked skeptical.

"Who are you, Professor X?" she asked. "Listen, Ari is… different, and as much as I would like it for her to leave, we need to talk to with Jonathon before anything is decided."

"That's fine," I said. "Is he here?" She nodded.

"I'll get him, please take a seat," she walked into another room and I heard her say something. The next moment, Jonathon walked into the room. He sat down in a chair across from me.

"Who are you?" he asked. No greeting, no formalities, just straight to the point.

"I'm Percy Jackson," I said for the second time. "I'm from Camp Half-Blood." Jonathon nodded like he understood.

"She said you'd come," he said. "She said that someone from 'camp' would come for Ari someday."

"Ari's mother?" I asked. "Who was she? What was her name?"

"I don't know," Jonathon said. "She never gave me her name. But, what is special about Ari? Why are you taking her?"

"You might not believe me," I warned him, but I did explain everything to him. I told him that Ari's mom was a goddess, gave him details about camp, and reassured him of Ari's safety. Jonathon seemed surprised at the information, but also very relieved.

"When will you be leaving?" he asked.

"As soon as possible," I said. "Anywhere outside of camp is dangerous enough, but California is particularly so."

"I'll go get her," he said. He walked out of the room and up the stairs. I was surprised when he returned alone.

"She wants to talk to you alone," he said. This seemed strange to me, but I followed him up the stairs to Ari's room. Though I couldn't explain why, a sense of unease swept through me as I entered the room.

The room was small, with just enough room for the small bed and dresser that were the only furniture in it. But, there were also pictures on the walls. I couldn't make out any details in the dim light, but the colors red and orange were everywhere. Finally, I turned to the little girl I had been sent to retrieve. She had her back to me and was staring at one of the pictures.

"Hello, Ari," I began. "My name is—"

"Perseus Jackson," she interrupted, I froze when she said my full name. "I know who you are."

"Um, how do you know me?" I asked.

"From my dreams," she said enigmatically. "I've seen you so many times."

"Okay," I said awkwardly. "So, you know why I'm here too?"

"Yes," she said. "You're going to take me away. You're going to take me to the camp. I've seen the camp in my dreams too. So many times…"

I didn't really know how to respond at first. I began to wonder if there was more about this girl that was "off" besides her parentage.

"I won't take you there if you don't want to go," I said. "You can—"

"Your teacher is here," she said all of a sudden.

"What?" I asked, failing to comprehend her words.

"Your teacher is here," she repeated. "She's here for me."

I finally grasped the meaning of her words as a crash sounded from down stairs.

"Where is she!" an all too familiar voice screeched from downstairs. "Where is the girl!"

I bolted out the door and down the stairs to see the Furies standing over the Jonathon. Maria was lying beside the front door; at least, most of her was.

"Alecto, let him go!" I yelled at my ex-algebra teacher. "He's just a mortal."

"Perseus?" she asked. "What are you doing here? Leave now or you shall suffer." I uncapped Riptide.

"Step away from the mortal or _you _shall suffer," I snapped back.

"You know not what you defend, boy," she said before ripping apart Jonathon's throat with her talons. I watched the body fall to the ground as if in slow motion before launching myself at the closest Fury. It exploded into golden dust as Riptide sank into her up to the hilt. The second Fury tried to use her whip, but couldn't in the small space of the room. I felt a tug in my gut as the plumbing of the building exploded and crashed into her with such force that she joined her sister in Tartarus. Now all that was left was Alecto.r

"Last chance," I warned. "You can run back to Hades with your tail between you legs, or I can send you back myself." Alecto trembled with rage, but she didn't attack.

"You know not what you defend," she repeated. Then she flew at me. I raised Riptide, but I wasn't fast enough and Alecto crashed into me. I dropped Riptide and slammed against the back wall. I could vaguely feel Alecto's claws trying to rip me to pieces, but they were ineffective against the Curse of the Achilles. I blindly struck out with my right leg and Alecto fell off of me. I reached into my pocket and felt Riptide. I quickly uncapped it and brought it down on Alecto's neck. It never reached its target. The bronze blade of a Greek sword had stopped my attack from landing. I looked up and froze with surprise.

"Achilles?" I asked. The last time I had seen the ancient warrior was at the River Styx with Nico. Now he was here, alive and prepared for a fight.

"I'm sorry, Perseus," he said with true regret in his voice. "But, I cannot allow you to succeed in your quest." He grabbed my shirt roughly and tossed me out the broken door into the street.

"Get the girl," I heard him say to Alecto. "I'll meet you back at Hades' Palace."

I got to my feet and saw Achilles before in a fighting stance.

"Ready yourself, hero," he said. "My last true opponent was Hector. Let us see how you compare to him."

"Why are you doing this?" I asked. "I'm just trying to protect a half-blood."

"Sometimes, you're better off not knowing the truth," he said. "Now, fight me!" He lunged at me and I raised Riptide to meet his sword.

(Alabastor POV)

I couldn't believe my luck. That fool had gone on a quest the day after I arrived at camp. This would make my job much easier. The only problem would be the daughter of Athena. Her devotion to him was impressive, to say the least. I almost felt bad about what I was going to do. Almost, but he deserved everything that was coming to him. Soon, my revenge would be complete, and that insufferable son of Poseidon would know my pain; the pain of abandonment and betrayal. Soon.

**A.N: No changes… I liked the way the chapter was written. Like I said, when I see places where I want to add to it, I will. But the story is excellent as it is and the beginning was my favorite part; though I do like to add my own battle stuff so next chapter will likely have some changes/additions. I updated this because Legacy of Asgard isn't ready yet… Sunday is my best estimate for an update.**


	4. Effect

Ch. 4

The two bronze swords met with a piercing _CLANG_. Achilles wasted no time in attacking again. I dodged to the right, but Achilles altered his attack and I had to block again. I backed up and tried to catch my breath, but Achilles didn't let up. He was keeping me on the defensive while Alecto attacked Ari. I was holding my own for now, but I could feel my arms getting tired under Achilles rain of blows. At the same time, his attacks were getting slower, more erratic. He was growing tired as well. In a desperate effort to beat him, I threw Riptide into the air. Achilles eyes followed the sword's flight before he realized his mistake. I balled my right hand into a fist and swung with all of the strength I had. It connected with Achilles' cheekbone and the ancient warrior stumbled back in surprise. He swung horizontally, but I ducked under the cut and caught Riptide as it fell again. I slammed the flat of my sword against Achilles' hand and he dropped his sword. I placed Riptide's point against his throat. Achilles stared at it for a moment before smiling at me.

"Well, you are a more worthy opponent that Hector, but you fight like a mortal," he said. He grabbed Riptide in his hand and tried rip it from my grasp. I pushed my sword forward in desperation, but it couldn't penetrate his skin.

"We are greater than mortals, Perseus," Achilles said. "We are lions among sheep; gods among mortal warriors. We fight and kill until the cold embrace of Thanatos takes us. Because you do not understand that, you can never defeat me." He ripped Riptide from me and threw it aside. "Give up this fight, Perseus."

"I can't allow you to take Ari to Hades," I responded with fake confidence. "You'll have to kill me before I let you." Achilles looked disappointed with my answer.

"She's only one half-blood," he said coldly. "Our kind die everyday. What is so special about her?"

"I could ask you the same thing," I said. "Why is she so important that Hades send the Furies _and _you to kill her?" Achilles scowled at me.

"I told you," he said slowly. "It's better if you do not know the truth."

I felt Riptide return to my pocket, but it wouldn't help me yet. I had to get to his heel.

"Alecto is probably done by now," Achilles said. "My job will be complete."

"What's in it for you?" I asked in an attempt to buy time. "What did Hades promise you in exchange for Ari?"

"That's is not your concern," Achilles said. "Now, if you'll excuse me." Achilles turned and walked back up to the house. As his back was turned, I uncapped Riptide and stabbed it into his heel. Achilles cried out in pain and stumbled, but he didn't die. He turned and glared at me.

"That was a foul trick, Perseus," he said. "To attack me with my back turned, that is the coward's way."

"Why aren't you dead?" I asked.

"Foolish boy, I'm already counted amongst the fallen," he said. "Nothing you do will affect me."

Achilles stepped towards me and a Stygian Iron spear materialized in his hands. I didn't know how well the Curse of the Styx would fare against Stygian Iron, but I was about to find out. He leveled his spear at my chest and would have skewered me, had the house not blown up.

A flash of lightning and crash of thunder were all I saw and heard before the second floor of Ari's house exploded. I looked up at the ruin to see Ari floating in the air above the house. Dark clouds had gathered and swirled above her, the wind whipped wildly around us, and lightning flashed across the sky. Ari's silver eyes glowed with power as she slowly descended to our level. Achilles stared at her in awe and fear before charging at her with his spear. Ari sidestepped his attack and placed her small hand against his chest. Achilles was blown back as a powerful blast of electricity emitted from Ari's palm. It was similar to the shocks Thalia would give when she got angry, but this was much stronger. Achilles flew back and slammed into another house across the street. He didn't get back up.

For a moment, I just stared at Ari and the display of power she just demonstrated. She turned and looked at me with her piercing eyes. I felt exposed under her gaze, as if my entire life was lain out before her. Then, her eyes fluttered and the spell was broken. I jumped forward to catch her as she lost consciousness. The storm that raged so violently around us began to disappear until no traces of it remained. I looked at the broken husk of Ari's home and felt guilt well up inside me at the thought of her father and Maria; my failure to protect them.

With Ari in my arms, I turned and walked away from that place.

I didn't want to risk flying back to New York, but traveling across the whole of America with a seven-year old while vicious monsters hunted us probably wasn't the best idea either. In the end, I chose land travel. Hades had want Ari dead, so I didn't know if I could trust Zeus yet. Ari might have been Zeus' daughter, and that could be why Hades had sent the Furies after us, but that didn't seem right. Rowan had said that her dad was the mortal parent, so Zeus couldn't possibly be her parent. But, then who could it be?

"You're taking me to camp?" Ari asked. She had woken up an hour ago and had been walking beside me as we left the city of San Francisco. She had been silent until now.

"Yeah, I am," I responded. "I think you'll like it there. We have weapon training, Pegasus riding, campfires, and you'll make lots of new friends."

"Friends," she repeated numbly. "I've seen camp in my dreams. I've seen you and your friends in them too."

"What have you seen?" I asked. I hadn't had time to ask her back at her house.

"It was like a TV show I would watch when I fell asleep," she said. "I saw you when you were twelve, when had to find the lightning bolt. I saw you fighting that lion creature at the arch. I saw you fight that man at the beach." I felt slightly uneasy during her recounting of my first quest.

"Is that all?" I asked.

"No," she said. "I saw you and that blonde girl fighting the giant with one eye. I saw you and another girl fighting a giant man on a mountain. I saw you fighting a dragon lady in a forest with the blonde girl. I saw you fighting the man with golden eyes."

Every sentence furthered my sense of unease about this girl. She was talking about each of my quests that led up to the war with the Titans last summer. I didn't know how much she understood, but I couldn't imagine what all of this stuff had done to her.

"What does it all mean?" she asked. "I've been having the dreams for years, but I can only remember pieces of them. Please, tell me what they mean."

I didn't know where to begin, so I chose the direct approach. "Well, your mom is a goddess." Ari didn't look very surprised, but I didn't expect her to be after the day's events. She looked confused, but also her eyes shone with something that, while not real happiness, border-lined on excitement.

"I don't remember her," she said sadly. " Do you know who she is?"

"No, I don't," I responded sympathetically. "But, she'll probably claim you when we get to camp. The gods used to ignore us, but they've been getting better this year."

"She speaks to me sometimes," Ari said randomly.

"Who, your mom?" I asked. Ari nodded.

"She told me that you would come," she said. "She would show me things too. I would draw pictures of them." I remembered the pictures she'd had in her room.

"What things did she show you?" I asked. Ari opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again and looked confused.

"I… I don't remember," she said. "I used to look at them for hours, but I can't remember what they looked like now. It's so strange."

That about summed up my day. But, I couldn't shake the uneasiness that was inside me. We walked in silence for the rest of the day. The next day I decided to speed things up and boarded an east bound train. It stopped twice, in St. Louis and Boston before finally returning to New York City at around 7 o'clock. I had Iris-messaged camp the other day to inform them of my arrival and Argus was to be waiting for us at the bus station. I was surprised when he wasn't.

I waited ten minutes before hailing a taxi.

"Where to, mate?" the cabbie said in with a slight British accent. I gave him the address and got the expected response.

"You realize that there's nothing out there, right?" he asked.

"I know, but we can get to our final destination from there," I said. The cabbie looked skeptical before turning back to the wheel.

"I'll take your word for it then," he replied.

The drive was spent in silence. Ari hadn't said a word since our initial trek from San Francisco. I was somewhat relieved when the taxi stopped at the foot of Half-Blood Hill.

"Thanks for the ride," I said and handed him the due amount. He counted the money, gave me one last odd look, and then sped away back to the city.

"This is Half-Blood Hill," I said to Ari. "That's Thalia's tree and it's what protects us from the monsters."

"I saw it in my dreams," Ari said. "I saw a girl come out of it when you put the golden blanket on it."

"That was Thalia," I said. "She a Hunter of Artemis right now, but she visits on occasion. She's a great friend and I think you'll like her."

"A Hunter of Artemis," Ari repeated. "Like that other girl, the one in the stars."

I looked up at the constellation she spoke of, the Huntress. It burned as bright and true as the day it had been put in the sky. I smiled sadly as I remembered those days, when every day was a battle that I only won through the aid of my friends and allies.

"That was Zoë," I said. "She was one of the bravest people I have ever met. She deserves her place up there."

"Can we go to the camp now?" she asked.

"Yeah, come on," I said. "I'll show you around."

We walked up the hill and past the sleeping form of Peleus. Ari looked at him curiously, but otherwise didn't react. Most of the campers would be at the campfire by now, so I headed in that direction. Sure enough, the campers were sitting around the enchanted fire while the Apollo Cabin led the sing-along. I spotted Annabeth sitting among her siblings and felt happy that she was here. I was about to make my presence known when one of the other campers did it for me.

"Hey, who's that guy?" he asked. I found this question odd, but didn't worry about. He must be new. However, when many of the campers, even the older ones, began voicing similar statements and looking at me in confusion, I began to get a little worried. Finally, Annabeth stepped forward. I'm not sure what I expected, but I didn't get it.

"Hi, I'm Annabeth Chase," she said politely. "Who are you?" I stared blankly at her, barely understanding the words she had just spoken.

"Annabeth, it's me, Percy," I said. Annabeth looked confused.

"Have we met?" she asked.

"Stop messing around," I said. "You know me. I've been here for five years."

"Is that so?" Clarisse asked as she stood up. "Well, I think I would've remembered you."

"Clarisse, what are you talking about?" I asked in growing desperation. "You _do _know me. You've tried to kill me several times." She raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, like that narrows down the list," she joked, but her distrust was evident on her face.

"Listen, Percy, right?" Annabeth said. "I'm sure that I've never seen you before. So, could you please explain what you're doing here."

"Annabeth, please," I said as my world crashed around me. "You know me, you all know me. Look at these and tell me you don't." I took my bead necklace off of my neck and displayed it for everyone to see. Everyone looked confused at this evidence.

"It's probably a trick," someone said from the back. "Yeah, how do we know if we can trust this guy?" That was all it took. Similar statements were spreading throughout the congregated campers and they were staring at me with open distrust, even some of my oldest friends.

"I don't know who you are, but you'd better start explaining," Annabeth said. The glare she was giving me tore my heart to pieces.

"Annabeth…" I reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, but she jumped and struck out with her knife. It would have cut my hand to ribbons if not for my invulnerability. As it was, her strike bounced off and jarred her arm. Annabeth cried out in more surprise than pain, but that sent things even further into chaos. In an instant, dozens of weapons were leveled at me, with Clarisse's spear being inches from my face.

"That's it," she growled. "I'm giving you one chance to turn around and leave before I send you straight to Hades." I stared at her face and saw nothing but loathing. Annabeth was looking at me in confusion, but there was also anger and distrust. In every face there were varying degrees of hate, fear, and distrust. Finally, I looked at Chiron. He looked at me blankly as if he wasn't sure what to do. Ari was watching this whole scene play out with avid curiosity on her face. She didn't seem to care what was happening, but instead just wanted to see what the end result was.

"Well, are you leaving or not?" a voice asked. It was Shawn. That was the final push. With my world crashing around me, I turned and walked away from the campers, away from my friends. I walked back to Half-Blood Hill, and turned to look at my home one last time. Clarisse and a few others had followed me to ensure that I left.

"If I ever see you here again," she threatened. "I won't be so hospitable." Somehow, that made this entire situation that much worse.

Almost in a trance, I walked away from Camp Half-Blood. I wouldn't be back.

**Alabaster POV **

All of the pieces were falling into place. The campers' minds had been broken easily, especially the newer ones. The Athena girl had proved more difficult to manipulate than anticipated, but in the end she joined her friends as pawns in my game of revenge. All that was left to do was tie up the loose ends.

"Hello Mrs. Blofis," I said politely. "I'm here to talk to you about your son." I will the mist into her mind.

"Son?" she asked. "What son?"

"Percy Jackson," I said. "Surely you remember him." She looked deeply troubled by my words.

"I'm sorry, but I don't have a son," she replied. "You must have the wrong people." I looked into her eyes and saw absolute sincerity.

"Yes, that must be it," I said. "I'm sorry to take up your time like this, Mrs. Blofis. Have a nice day." I walked away down the hall leaving a bewildered Sally Jackson in my wake. All of the pieces were coming together.


	5. Loss

Ch. 5

What are you supposed to do when everything you knew, your very home was taken away from you by the people you had loved and trusted for years? I didn't have an answer to that. The events of last night were swirling around in my head, and they made absolutely no sense no matter how I looked at it. The only I could think to do was go to the only place left to go: my parents' apartment.

Though I loved my parents more than anything, I had come to consider camp as my true home over the last year. I stayed with my parents during school, but I was at camp at every given opportunity: weekends, holidays, anytime not taken up as a student was spent as a teacher for young half-bloods. I guess I was following in Chiron's footprints, or would that be hoofprints? Thinking about my old mentor reminded me of his reaction to my eviction. He had been confused, but about what? None of it added up. Maybe my mom could help me figure this out. I had arrived at her and Paul's apartment. I knocked twice.

It was a few minutes before I heard footprints on the other side of the door. The door opened to reveal my mom standing there in a nightgown and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. I felt a deep sense of happiness as I saw her there. Her next words crushed that happiness with utter brutality.

"Hello, how may I help you?" she asked and looked at me like I was a stranger waking her up in the middle of the night, that is to say, annoyed. I stared at her in disbelief for what might have been seconds or millennia before speaking.

"Mom, it's me, Percy," I said as tears threatened my eyes. She narrowed her eyes at me.

"Are you with that other kid?" she asked. "I already told him that I don't have a son. Now, could you please leave? It's one o'clock in the morning." She closed the door and left me there in the hallway. That is when the tears came. I didn't hold them back as everything became painfully real. My friends didn't know who I was, they threatened to kill me if I tried to go back, and now my mother thought I was a stranger. I didn't know how things could get worse.

I considered going to see my father, but quickly dismissed the idea. He wouldn't be at Olympus until the next council meeting for the Winter Solstice, and I had no idea how to get to Atlantis. The one time I had been there during the Titan War hadn't been very helpful in gaining a location. Unless he came to me, meeting him was nearly impossible. I could Iris-message him, but something about doing so felt wrong. What if he didn't know me either? That would push over the edge for sure. I had nowhere to go, no definite allies, and no goals. So I wandered.

For the next week, I made my away around the country. From city to city I traveled in a vaguely westward direction. Monsters would attack me occasionally, but the encounters were few and far in between. Some of them even ran away from me when they saw me coming. I didn't know whether this was a good thing or not. Nothing in the mortal world scared me anymore, and few things in the world of the gods could threaten me. I didn't want to die, but I didn't want to live either. My friends 'betrayal' was still fresh in my mind. Despite the hurt they had caused me, I wasn't angry; hurt, yes, confused, definitely, angry and wanting revenge, not so much.

"How did this happen?" I asked myself. I had returned to St Louis and, on a whim, I traveled to the top of the famous Arch like I had done what seemed like lifetimes ago.

"Well, well, well, what have here, sonny?" a voiced hissed behind me. My blood ran cold at the voice. I found it to be an impossible coincidence that my second encounter with her would be at the same place and under the same circumstance as the first. I turned and saw Echidna standing at the elevators with her son, the Chimera, beside her. This time, the Chimera was in its true form. It was tall enough to touch the ceiling, had the head of a lion, body of a goat, viper for a tail, and enough bloodlust in its eyes that it put Alecto to shame.

"Echidna," I said with forced indifference.

"I'm sorry that we weren't able to finish our last… game," she said with an evil smile on her face. "Don't worry, we'll destroy you this time." I uncapped Riptide and held it in front of me.

"Is that so?" I asked. "I'd like to see you try." I was bluffing. I had almost no hope of beating the Chimera in a one on one fight. But, if this were to be the end, I would die fighting. Echidna's smile widened at my challenge.

"You have grown powerful over the years, Perseus," she hissed. "It is only right that my son show you the true extent of his power."

"What do you—" I began to say before the Chimera began to grow. It grew larger and larger until the ceiling exploded from its size and the floor began to crack under its weight. Two more heads began to grow on either side of its lion head, a goat on the left, and a dragon on the right. Its front legs transformed into lion legs with razor sharp claws to go with them. I stared in awe and fear at the massive beast. It in turn glared down at me before roaring into the sky and unleashing a pillar of flame from its mouth.

"Have fun, Perseus," Echidna said before she disappeared in a burst of fire. I glanced back at the Chimera as it raised its massive paw and brought it down on me. I jumped to the side as the floor of the Arch gave way under the Chimera's blow. Cracks spread across the floor and I was amazed that it hadn't collapsed yet. I didn't have much time to ponder this, because I had to dodge again as three blasts of fiery death issued from the mouths of the Chimera. By now the Arch was being held up by an unknown miracle. The Chimera took a step forward and the floor cracked even more. I was considering jumping like I did last time when an idea came to me. I plunged Riptide hilt-deep into the broken floor and focused my willpower. I felt a familiar tug in my gut and the earth began to shake. The already weakened Arch began to give way under the damage from both above and below. The Chimera glanced at the widening cracks at its feet before the Arch's floor final broke. The massive creature disappeared from view as it plummeted towards the earth below.

I let out a sigh of relief as the Chimera's roar faded away. The elevator was pretty useless, so I was about to leave the old fashioned way when the Arch shook again. I looked through the hole in the floor to see the Chimera… flying. Two massive dragon wings extended from its back and the Chimera was circling what remained of the Arch as it unleashed wave after wave of fire and destruction. I had maybe a few seconds before the Arch collapsed entirely. I steeled my nerves, and jumped. I felt the sensation of being weightless as I free fell towards the Mississippi River below. I closed my eyes just before impact and felt the water rise up to catch me. Now I had to choose; on one hand, I could probably escape from the Chimera right now and hide somewhere where it couldn't find me, or I could go back and stop it from destroying the city of St. Louis and everyone in it. I knew that I couldn't have made any other decision as I rose to the surface. I looked around and quickly spotted the Chimera sitting atop a skyscraper and spewing out fire in all directions. I focused again and felt a pull in my gut. A ball of water began to form in front of me and grow in size until it was about the size of a bowling ball. This next part was trickier. I concentrated on the sphere and willed it to become colder. Steadily, the water solidified into a sphere of ice. Fueled by my pain and righteous anger at the screams of innocent people that filled the air, I launched the sphere like a bullet straight for the Chimera.

It punched a hole straight through its dragonhead and the other two roared in pain and fury. The Chimera fell from its perch and crashed into the ground with a resounding BOOM! I rushed to the place where it fell to see what had happened. I saw a small crater in the middle of the freeway with the Chimera lying at its center. Cautiously, I stepped forward slowly until I was right next to it. It wasn't breathing, but just to be sure I raised Riptide over my head to finish it. That is when the Chimera's eye flew open. Its lion claws came at me so fast I didn't see them until the buried themselves in my side. I was thrown back into the side of a building and the air was painfully driven out of me. I fell to the ground and waited for the pain to ease a little bit. Luckily, the Chimera didn't seem to be in a hurry to rise either. Its dragonhead hung limply from its shoulder and dripped green blood and the massive creature slowly stood up and turned to me. I was able to get to my knees before the pain got the better of me. I dared a glance at my side, but immediately wished I hadn't.

Three long gashes were cut into my side and were pouring out blood in torrents. I couldn't understand how the Chimera had penetrated the Curse of the Styx, but it had and I could almost hear the voice of Thanatos beckoning me to the Underworld. I was wrenched from these thoughts as the Chimera breathed more flames at me. I leapt to the side and felt the wound in my side rip further from the effort. I had to end this quickly. I dashed, as much as I could, towards the Chimera and avoided another barrage of flames. I rolled underneath its feet and plunged Riptide into its belly. The Chimera roared in pain and tried to lie down on me. I jumped out from under it and leapt onto its back while it was down. Almost instantly, I felt unbearable pain explode in my shoulder and saw the head of the Chimera's viper tail. I jumped away and cut the head off with Riptide, but the damage was done. I grabbed onto the Chimera's thick fur as it tried to toss me off. The effort was destroying my shoulder and the edges of my vision began to go black. I shook it off and used what willpower I had left to form a tiny sliver if ice in my hand. Similar to the sphere earlier, I launched the ice dagger at the goat head of the Chimera and it impaled itself in the creature's brain. The goat head gave one last feeble bleat before going limp. All that was left was the lion head. By now, the Chimera was doing everything it could to get me off its back. It ran into buildings, jumped up and down, everything, but I held fast and clawed my way to its final head.

It took what seemed like an eternity, but I finally reached its head. With one hand still holding on as tightly as possible to the hair of its bloody mane, I raised Riptide for the final blow. It almost worked, but the Chimera saw the bronze blade above its head and it gave one sharp jerk forward. I flew forward off of its head at hit the ground in front of it. I opened my eyes to see the Chimera snarling over me. I watched helplessly as it raised its massive paw and slam it down on me. I tried to cry out in pain, but all oxygen was driven from my body from the force of the blow. I could fell the life being crushed out of me. But, I wasn't going to give up. I don't know how I found the strength, but I willed myself to ignore the pain, ignore the horrible death I was moments away from experiencing, and focus on the water; the water in the air. I imagined myself floating in it, becoming part of it. Then, the pain disappeared, if only for a moment, then I was in the air above the Chimera. It was looking down in confusion at where I just was; it never saw me coming until it was too late. I fell down towards the Chimera and drove Riptide into the Chimera's thick skull up to the hilt. The Chimera threw its head back and gave a mighty roar full of pain and anger as its body began to dissolve. It happened slowly; first the two heads disappeared into a flurry of golden dust, then its body from the tail to its throats. Finally, its lion head became nothing more than so much golden dust upon the ground.

As for me, I was lying on my back as the Chimera disappeared. I watched it die and felt an odd satisfaction at having defeated such a mighty beast. But, I could feel death coming. My vision began to darken and I unconsciousness threatened to overtake me. I was about to fade away entirely when someone appeared. I couldn't make out any details through the darkness of my vision, but I could see his glowing golden eyes as they looked down at my broken body. He held out a hand to me.

"Come with me," he said in a gentle voice. "I can save you and give you answers to your questions, but I will not force you. If you choose, you may go to the realm of Hades, but you will never know the truth. What say you, Perseus?"

I stared at his hand and tried to make sense of his words. Did I want to know the truth? Achilles' words came back to me. I made my choice. Though I tried, I didn't have the strength to reach up to grab his hand. Fortunately, he went the rest of the way and grabbed mine.

"You've made the right choice, Perseus," he said. "Come, we have much to do." Then the world faded to black.

**A.N: FYI... I didn't write any of this story yet, still all Anonemuss14's. But like my profile says, I'm on vacation so I won't be updating any of my stories. I'm just posting chapters of this fic randomly until I find a spot I want to jump in. See you all in a couple more weeks.**


	6. Hero

Ch. 6

**Athena POV**

Reconstruction on Olympus was coming along nicely. Well, the actual construction took almost no time or effort since the work force was comprised of Cyclops. Simple and brutish as they are, they have their points of usefulness. However, the largest contributing factor was my daughter, Annabeth. I knew that I had made the right decision in appointing her, but even I was astounded by the progress made and the designs themselves. I hadn't been this proud of one of my children since Daedalus. Recently, she'd been putting even more time and effort into her work, to the point that she was rarely at camp. Pat of me wondered whether that boy, Perseus, was to blame. Seeing no harm in inquiring, I approached my daughter at her workstation in my palace.

"Good morning, Annabeth," I greeted. She turned and gave me a slight bow, but followed with a hug.

"Good morning, mother," she replied cheerfully. "How are you?" Aside from looking a little tired, nothing seemed wrong with her.

"Oh, I'm fine," I said flippantly. "What about you, my daughter? How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, construction is going well, I think," she said. "Everything should be completed in a few months. The Cyclops have been extremely helpful." This was all well and good, but not what I wanted to know.

"You haven't been to camp in a while," I said. Annabeth's expression changed immediately at the mention of her home.

"Yeah, something happened there recently," she mumbled. She rubbed her right shoulder like it hurt.

"Did it have to do with that boy, Perseus?" I asked. Annabeth's gaze snapped to me and she looked surprised.

"Do you know who he is?" she asked. I was caught off guard by her question.

"What does that mean?" I asked. "Of course I know him. Do you not know him?"

"Well, he showed up at camp about a week ago during the campfire," she explained. "I introduced myself to him, but he… he acted like he knew me. He said that he was a camper and showed us his necklace, but he couldn't have been. Things escalated pretty quickly and I guess I got a little jumpy. He put his hand on my shoulder and I lashed out with my knife."

"It didn't work, though," I surmised. "It bounced right off of his skin, didn't it?" Annabeth nodded.

"Yes, the recoil hurt my arm," she said. "It hurt a little bit, but I was more surprised than anything. The other campers must have thought that he attacked me, because they pretty much ran him out of camp after that. Mom, who was he?" I took several seconds to contemplate what I had just learned. There was only one explanation.

"Come with me," I said. I didn't give Annabeth a chance to respond, but grabbed her by the arm and steered her towards the main palace.

"Where are we going?" Annabeth asked. She was confused and a bit worried over this sudden shift of events.

"Don't talk for now, Annabeth," I said. She looked like she wanted to protest, but remained silent. We reached the palace and the massive doors swung open for me. The other gods weren't here, none of us were here for anything short of council meetings nowadays.

"Father, Hermes!" I called into the air. Within moments, Zeus and Hermes stood in front of me. Hermes chose the simple flash-in entrance, where as my father took the more… shall we say, shock and awe approach; he appeared in a larger-than-necessary burst of lightning.

"Yes, Athena, what is it?" my father asked as he sat down on his throne. He looked a little annoyed that I had dragged him away from whatever he had been doing, but he was also curious about my summoning him. Hermes on the other hand didn't look thrilled that I had brought Annabeth with me.

"Yeah, I'm already thirty-two seconds behind schedule and you're holding me up further, what's so important?" he asked.

"Brother, I asked for you so you could retrieve Hecate," I told him. He looked annoyed at my request.

"Really, that's it?" he asked incredulously. "At least give me something worthwhile if you're going to drag me away from work."

"Just do it," I growled. Hermes raised his hands defensibly, but he didn't look very sorry.

"Sheesh, fine," he said. "One goddess of magic, coming right up." He disappeared in a flash of light only for Hecate to take his place. She bowed to my father and me.

"Lord Zeus, Lady Athena," she said. "To what do I owe the pleasure of being summoned?" In answer, I brought Annabeth forward.

"The Mist, I think it's affecting my daughter," I said. "If it is, remove it." Hecate bowed and faced Annabeth. The two had a staring contest for several seconds before Annabeth's eyes widened and she passed out. I caught her as she fell.

"Well?" I inquired. Hecate looked at Annabeth thoughtfully.

"Yes, her memories were tampered with," Hecate confirmed. "Based on her memories, the same entity that did this to her also changed the memories of all those at Camp Half-Blood."

"What memories were changed?" I asked, though I had my suspicions.

"Any and all that pertained to Perseus Jackson," Hecate said, confirming my suspicions. "Your daughter remembers the last five years of her life, but there are… faded areas, shall we say, where an event has been blacked out. She remembers a person, but not a face, an effect, but not a cause. It is astounding that such a feat was accomplished, and on so wide a scale."

"Who did it?" I asked. I didn't very much care about the boy, but anyone powerful enough to pull something off like this had to be identified, and possibly eliminated.

"I cannot say, my lady," Hecate said. "But, if that is all, I will be leaving."

'Why so eager to leave, Hecate?' I wondered. A suspicion began to grow in my mind about the goddess before me, but now wasn't the time nor the place to act on it.

"Yes, you may go," I replied. Hecate bowed and disappeared in a flash on green light. I turned to my father who hadn't spoken throughout this transaction.

"What do you make of this?" I asked him. He was silent for several seconds.

"Where is Perseus now?" he asked.

"I can answer that," a new voice said. We both turned to see Apollo enter the throne room. His eyes were red and he looked deeply troubled. His voice lacked all of its usual mirth.

"What do you know, son?" Zeus asked him. Apollo bowed slightly before answering.

"He's dead," Apollo said bluntly. My father and I were thrown into utter shock at this news.

"What do you mean he's dead?!" I jumped at Annabeth's voice. She had just woken up, it seemed. Apollo looked at Annabeth and a tear ran down his face.

"The Chimera attacked him in St. Louis," he said. "It happened this morning. I saw most of the fight, Percy fought well, but it wasn't enough." Apollo waved his hand and an image formed beside him of the city of St. Louis. We saw everything from the fight atop the Arch, to the death of the Chimera. The image faded away and a heavy silence fell upon us. Annabeth was the first to break the silence. She began to sob at the loss of her boyfriend, and I couldn't help but pity her. I knelt down and put my arms around her. She returned the hug and cried into my shoulder until her tears ran dry.

"We must tell the others," my father said solemnly. I looked up and was surprised to see a tear at the edge of his eye. Though he never truly loved Perseus, it was now evident that he had some level of affection for him. "Hermes," he called softly. My brother appeared in the throne room for the second time that day and looked as annoyed as before. He was about to say something, but he stopped when he saw the looks on our faces.

"Um, what happened?" he asked. Father shook his head.

"I only wish to say it once," he said. "Assemble the others. Tell them… tell them that we have a fallen hero to honour." Hermes hesitated for several seconds as the puzzle pieces fell into place. When they did, his expression turned to shock, then grief. He shook his head as tears began to fall. I could hear small sniffles coming from his pocket where his Caduceus rested as a cell phone. He disappeared in a flash of light.

Over the next several minutes, the other Olympians flashed in and took their seats. Their attitudes varied from curious to annoyed, and from bored to sad. Poseidon, I noticed, looked puzzled. He obviously hadn't put two and two together yet. On different circumstances, I would have mocked him for his incompetence, but now I wished he could remain behind the safe walls of ignorance. As for the others, Hera, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus looked similar to Hermes the first time he'd been summoned. Apollo and Hermes were obviously sad, but I also saw a pained expression on Artemis' face. Dionysus looked bored as he sat on his throne. Hades and Demeter looked curious about the reason for their summoning. This surprised me, for I expected Hades to be the best informed of us all on the current status of Perseus. Ares was the only one who looked even remotely happy. Well, happy wasn't a word used to describe my hotheaded brother, but he wasn't scowling or looking around for a fight, so that was a start.

"Thank you all for coming," father said once everyone was seated. "No doubt some of you are wondering about the nature of this meeting. Well, there's no point in keeping you all in suspense. A hero has fallen on this day. And that hero was…" At this point, father looked over at Poseidon and I could almost see the terrible realization course through my uncle. "Perseus Jackson."

The council was absolutely still for three seconds before it gave way to mayhem. The noise and confusion increased as each of the gathered immortals tried make their own voices heard. Father, Hermes, Apollo, and I tried to regain order. Throughout it all, Poseidon was the only one silent. He sat in his throne staring blankly into space. Finally, he slammed the butt of his trident into the ground and a tremor ran through the ground. Everyone froze and stared at him warily. He looked each of us in the eyes before speaking.

"Tell me everything," he said to my father. Father nodded and proceeded to explain everything from Percy's eviction from camp to his "defeat" of the Chimera. When it was over, Poseidon stood and looked at my daughter.

"You did this," he said, his voice didn't sound angry, just detached, like he wasn't really there. "You did this," he repeated. He raised his trident and leveled it at Annabeth. I jumped in front of my daughter before Poseidon could harm her. My father's master bolt appeared in his hand.

"Brother, stop this now!" he ordered. Hades rose from his throne and his sword appeared in his hands.

"She is the cause of this," Poseidon said in the same distant tone. "My son is dead because of her. This is justice." Poseidon's voice cracked at the word 'dead', but otherwise remained impassive.

"No, brother," Hades said. "Were you not listening? Hecate said that an outside force affected her mind. She had no choice."

"Then I shall destroy this force as well!" Poseidon shouted and the throne room began to shake as his fury finally erupted.

"Brother!" my father shouted. His bolt blazed with power and the air smelled of ozone.

"Don't do this, Poseidon," Hades said. "Her life is not yours to take." The air metal of his sword hissed and popped due to its low temperature. Just a touch from that blade would be enough to seal any of us in Tartarus. Poseidon looked between his two brothers before looking down sharply. We followed his gaze and were shocked to see Annabeth standing at Poseidon's feet. The look on her face broke my heart, but I was more concerned about what might happen to her. My spear and Aegis appeared in my hands in anticipation. Poseidon looked at my daughter without blinking before shrinking down to his mortal height.

"Please, lord Poseidon," Annabeth said. "You have to believe them. It wasn't me; something forced me to do it. Something forced all of camp to forget Percy. I remember it happening, but I can't explain what happened or why. Please, believe me." Poseidon looked deeply conflicted. You could almost cut the tension in the air with a knife. Finally, Poseidon sighed.

"I believe you," he said softly. "I… I'm sorry for my actions. They were… extreme. But, I must go now. I need time… to mourn." Tears threatened Poseidon's eyes and he disappeared in a sea mist before they could spill out. The rest of us returned to our seats.

"What now?" Hermes asked to no one in particular.

"It is as I said, we shall honour him," father said. "Dionysus, inform those at Camp Half-Blood of the events of this council. Hades, see that he is judged fairly. I believe he found an enemy in Judge Minos, no?"

"That is correct, brother," Hades responded. "I'll carry out his judgment myself. In spite of recent events, I believe he deserves a place in Elysium."

"What recent events?" father asked. His brow furrowed in suspicion.

"Oh, it was nothing, brother," the lord of the Underworld said. "Just a little spat with the Furies again." He said it nonchalantly, but I noticed his brief hesitation, the flash of panic in his dark eyes. He disappeared in a mass of darkness before anyone could respond.

"He deserves more than Elysium," Artemis said. "He should be immortalized in the stars." Many were surprised by the goddess' suggestion, more so because it was her who suggested it than the idea itself.

"Why the sudden burst of generosity towards him, Artemis?" Aphrodite asked. "Does our little huntress have a crush?" I wasn't sure whose glare was more terrifying, Artemis' or Annabeth's.

"Respect is not the same as affection, Aphrodite," Artemis said calmly. "But, I wouldn't expect you to understand respect. The simple fact is that Perseus was a good man and a hero, one of the few I have ever known to exist. I would see that he be made an example for future heroes and men everywhere." Her reasoning made sense, and there was a murmuring of agreement in the throne room.

"Very well, Artemis," father said. "The council seems to be in agreement, so it shall be." Zeus pointed his bolt at the sky and unleashed a powerful blast of lightning that exploded in the vastness of the heavens. After several seconds, the stars began to realign before the shape of a male hero raising his sword in triumph stood amongst the stars.

"The Hero," father said. "Let it be a sign for those to come for all time. With that, let this council adjourn."

Some time later, I was searching the streets of Olympus for Annabeth. She hadn't been seen since the end of the council. I knew well enough that my daughter was in a fragile state right now, so I didn't want her to do anything stupid. I almost gave up on finding her when I saw her in one of the gardens near the elevator to the mortal world. I felt relief wash over me when I saw that she was safe, but that relief turned to confusion when I saw her with Artemis. My half-sister was nodding solemnly as Annabeth spoke. As quietly as possible, I snuck up to listen in on their conversation.

"You know, Annabeth, there are others like you in the hunt," Artemis said. "Men can hurt women in many ways; not all of them in their cruelty. But, are you sure that this is what you desire?"

"Yes, Lady Artemis," Annabeth said in a shaky voice. "This is what I want."

"Then perhaps you should inform your mother of your plans," Artemis said and turned to my hiding spot. "You can come out, sister." I sighed and approached them. I knew what it was that Annabeth wanted; she knew that I knew as well. She didn't even have to ask.

"If this is what will make you happy, my daughter," I began. "Then you may do it. We will work out some way for you to visit Olympus to finish reconstruction, or perhaps we shall use Iris-messages."

"Thank you, mother," Annabeth said and hugged me. "It's just that… after this, I don't know if I can ever be the same. In the hunt, there are others who have been through the same. Also, I'll be able to see Thalia more, and this… this just seems like the wisest thing to do now."

"I understand, Annabeth," I said. "I'm sure you shall find happiness again."

"Come, Annabeth," Artemis said. "Let us go meet your new sisters and properly make you one of us." Annabeth nodded and stood by Artemis' side. She looked sad, but she looked up at the sky and I could see pride and love shining in her eyes. I followed her gaze and saw The Hero in its new spot. Next to it shined the constellation of that other girl, Zoë Nightshade. The Hunter and The Hero, side by side in the heavens, something about it seemed appropriate. I looked back at Annabeth and she waved a final sad goodbye. I knew that I would see her again, but she would be different then. She would be a hunter. I returned the wave as the two women disappeared in a flash of silver light.


	7. Rebirth

_**Ch. 7**_

When I regained consciousness, the first thing I noticed was that the pain was gone. One would think that after a fight with the Chimera you would at the absolute least be a little bit sore, but that wasn't the case. I felt fine; great even, like I could take on an army of Chimera. The second thing I noticed was that I was in my cabin at camp. I got off my bunk and hurried to the door. I opened it to see Camp Half-Blood spread out before me. The only problem was that it was deathly silent. All the sounds I had come to associate with this place were gone.

"Hello, is anybody here?" I called out. My voice echoed across the valley, not disturbed by even the smallest of noises.

"Not really, no," a voice said behind. I spun around to see a young boy sitting against a tree. He wore golden robes and had stark white hair. He couldn't have been more than ten, but his golden eyes glowed with power.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"Ah, but where are my manners," the boy said while standing up and giving a low bow. "I am Chronus, Primordial god of Time."

"Chronus?" I repeated. I wasn't sure what the correct approach was for a primordial god, but I went with the safest route; I bowed back. Chronus laughed at me.

"Well, it's been awhile since anyone has bowed to me," he said cheerfully. "You don't have to if you don't want to, but who am I to order you around. Anyway, you might be wondering where you are, no?"

"Um, is this not Camp Half-Blood?" I asked. Chronus smiled slightly at my question.

"Well, this is my realm," he said. "I altered its appearance because I thought that this… atmosphere would be more appealing to you than the usual environment."

"What is the usual environment?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Exactly," Chronus said. "It can't be described in any way that a mortal, such as you, would understand it. Don't take this the wrong way, Perseus, but when it comes to the Metaphysical, your kind are… incompatible, for lack of a better word."

"Metaphysical?" I asked. "Chiron mentioned that once. He said that it was a topic for another day."

"Well then, it would appear that the day has come," Chronus said. He said down with his legs crossed underneath the tree. "Come and sit with me, Perseus." I obeyed and sat down across from him.

"I told you that I would answer your questions, so shoot," he said. He was the man who had saved me? Something about it didn't seem right.

"Wait, you saved me?" I asked. "But, you look like a little kid. There was a grown man who saved me." Chronus smiled again.

"Do you know what time cycles are?" he asked. I shook my head. "Well, you'll see later. It's easier to explain once you've seen it for yourself." He reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a pocket watch, but had an hourglass instead of a clock. I watched as the hourglass changed into a sundial, then an analog clock, and then into a digital clock. Finally in returned to its hourglass form.

"Yes, the effects will take some time, but you'll definitely notice by them when they come," he said after putting away his "watch". "Now, any other questions?" Too many, but where do I start?

"Why am I here?" I asked. "Why did you save me?" Chronus smiled and his golden eyes shone with approval. I had asked the right question.

"You are here because my master requested it," he said. "My master is Khaos. You might have heard of Khaos as the creator of the primordials, and by extension, creation."

"What would Khaos want with me?" I asked, amazed at this information. "I'm just… just a half-blood. There's nothing _that_ special about me." Chronus shook his head, but there was a small smile on his face.

"That is where you're wrong, Perseus," he said. "Khaos saw something in you, untold potential for greatness. Now, there have been others throughout the course of history, but they've all had something holding them back. There was always something that prevented them from joining with me in Khaos' service."

"What is it that's so special about me?" I asked. "I mean, I guess I'm an okay swordsmen, but I'm not the best." Chronus was shaking his head again.

"You're thinking about it the wrong way," he said. "Yes, there have been many warriors throughout history greater than you, but it is not your arm that caught Khaos' eye. It was this." Chronus placed his small against my chest, over my heart.

"History is filled with great warriors, Perseus," Chronus said. "But, it has an unfortunate lack of true heroes. Look up into the sky, Perseus, it is filled with the idols of men, but there only a few that deserve the love and respect they gained. Khaos saw you as the true hero you are. Warriors, the world does need warriors. But, it needs heroes more."

A silence fell between us as Chronus concluded his speech. I thought about his words, I had never really thought about things that way before. When anyone called someone a hero, it was a compliment to his or her prowess in combat. But, Chronus had completely done away with that notion.

"Khaos wants me to join him?" I asked.

"First off, Khaos is not a he," Chronus explained. "Neither is Khaos a she. Khaos… is. Khaos is everything, and nothing. One cannot describe Khaos without first understanding everything about creation. Mortals try to each day, and fail time and time again. But, to your question, yes."

"Do I get to meet Khaos?" I asked. Apparently, this question was immensely funny, because Chronus was on the ground laughing so hard that tears cam to his eyes and it sounded like he was crying. Finally, he stopped to speak.

"Oh no, at least not for a good long while," Chronus said. "Khaos is so powerful, you would be nothing but so much atomic dust the moment you entered his presence."

"Kronos said that he could vaporize me by just being near me," I remembered. Chronus scowled at the mention of the Titan.

"Yes, he was correct, but then again, mortals are quite fragile," Chronus said. I wanted to protest, but didn't bother. To him, everything was probably fragile. He smiled and chuckled randomly.

"I guess you could say that," he said.

"Did you read my mind?" I asked as I made the connection.

"The mind is not simply a book to be read, Perseus," Chronus said. "But, in your manner of speaking, yes. I am arguably the second most ancient and powerful being in existence."

"Arguably second?" I noticed. "Who's your competition?" Chronus chuckled at something.

"My sister, Ananke," he said. "Primordial goddess of Fate. She and her daughters are the ones pulling the strings, literally, behind every event that has happened and will happen. I work with them from time to time, but my involvement is more… discreet, shall we say."

"Okay, but I have a few more questions," I said. Chronus smiled his smile that had already become his most noticeable feature, even more so than his glowing eyes. His smile was like that of a patient parent. It was almost like I was a child that he had to explain the workings of the world to, and he would help me find them no matter what it took.

"Only a few?" he asked sarcastically, but not spitefully. I smiled slightly at his antics. He was unlike any immortal I had ever met before.

"Well, could you tell me what happened to my friends at camp?" I asked. "It was as if they didn't know me. My own mom didn't recognize me." Chronus' cheerful attitude vanished. He didn't respond for several minutes. He looked like he was lost in deep thought. Finally, he closed his eyes and sighed softly.

"Perseus, if you wish to know the truth, I shall tell you," he said. "But, sometimes ignorance is bliss, or so they say. You may not wish to know the truth once you hear it." Achilles' words returned to me again.

"I want to know," I said. Chronus' eyes looked at me with pity, like he knew that the truth would hurt and didn't want me to hear it, but knew also that I wouldn't take "no" for an answer.

"Alabaster Torrington is the root of your misfortune," Chronus said. I looked at him blankly. I didn't understand, so Chronus elaborated. "Alabaster is a son of Hecate who fought on the side of the Titans during the war. He was very loyal to their cause, and none too happy when you defeated them. He urged his mother to continue fighting, but the other Olympians ordered Hecate to stand down or else they would kill her son. Hecate agreed, but her son was banished from the realm of the gods because they didn't want him to, and I'm paraphrasing her, 'corrupt any of their children with his treacherous ways'. Needless to say, Alabaster's hatred only grew. He hated the gods most, but knew that he couldn't do anything about them, so he targeted you. Using his powers over the Mist, he infiltrated your camp and altered the campers' minds. He erased their memories of you while you were away. He believed that you should feel the same loneliness and abandonment that he felt. That is why you are here, Perseus."

I listened to all of this in silence. I should feel angry, right? This guy, Alabaster, had taken everything from me because he was angry with me. That wasn't right, that wasn't fair. I should be angry, but I wasn't. I felt sad, and pity for Alabaster. However, I was angry with the Olympians. Our deal had specified that the soldiers of the Titans should be pardoned. Instead, they had driven Alabaster down the road to revenge. Old habits die hard, I suppose, but it still infuriated me. I looked up at Chronus and saw mixed emotions in his eyes, but the dominant one was pride. He knew about my inner struggle, and knew that I hadn't let anger and betrayal control me like they had to Alabaster.

"What's happened since then?" I asked. "Did things change?"

"Quite a bit," Chronus said solemnly. "It's better to show you." An image formed out of mist beside us. I looked into it and saw multiple things. I saw Athena, Annabeth, and Zeus talking with a woman wearing green. I saw the Olympians gather and a fight almost breakout between my father and my uncles. I saw them place a new constellation in the sky. It ended with Annabeth joining the hunters. somehow, throughout it all, I completely understood what was happening. Even that which went unsaid.

In truth, I had no idea how to react to what I had seen. Should I be sad, angry, betrayed, or even happy? I just felt numb. The thing that affected me the most was the final image. Annabeth had joined the hunters. Even if I ever returned to Earth, things would never be the same between us. I only had one final question.

"What do I do now?" I asked Chronus. His smile returned, though it was smaller and sadder than earlier.

"I'm going to train you, Perseus," he said. "Though I won't go into detail, there is a great evil rising in your world. As you are, you will be of help to nobody. But, given time and effort, you will become the saviour, the hero that the world needs. But, first you must take the first step."

"What is the first step?" I asked. Chronus didn't answer, but instead looked up as the sun reached its noontime peak. He smiled slightly as his body began to glow with a powerful golden light. I averted my eyes to avoid being blinded, and when I looked back, the little boy was gone. In his place, was a grown man wearing the same clothes, with the same white hair, and the same golden eyes as Chronus. He smiled as I gaped in awe at him.

"This is a time cycle, Perseus," Chronus said. "In the mornings, I am a young boy. In the afternoon, I am a man. At night, I am an old man. This cycle continues for as long as time flows, or at least so long as I remain confined to this corporeal form. But, back to the topic at hand, the first step is to swear yourself to my master, to Khaos." I didn't hesitate.

"What must I do?" I asked. Chronus smiled at my immediate answer.

"Give me your sword," he said. I was surprised by the request, but pulled Riptide from my pocket and handed it to the god before me. He looked at the pen for several seconds before uncapping it. Riptide sprang into its true form and gleamed brightly in the sunlight. Chronus turned to me.

"Kneel, Perseus," he said. I obeyed.

"Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon and Sally Jackson, you are here to bind yourself to Khaos, master of all. If you accept the privilege and responsibility or this position, repeat after me. I, Perseus Jackson, swear myself to the service of Khaos."

"I, Perseus Jackson, swear myself to the service of Khaos," I repeated.

"I swear to uphold the dignity of his name, and spread the truth of his greatness to all who would doubt it."

"I swear to uphold the dignity of his name, and spread the truth of his greatness to all who would doubt it," I repeated.

"I swear that my shield shall protect the innocent, and that my blade shall reap the lives of the guilty."

I repeated the words.

"Rise now, Perseus," Chronus said. "Rise and take on the role you were destined to fill. You have fallen, but like a Phoenix, you are reborn and will rise again. Rise as a servant to Khaos." I stood and faced Chronus. In his hand, Riptide began to glow for several seconds before its bronze color was replaced by a silvery metallic luster. Though it was simple, I couldn't help but admire the beauty of the weapon.

"Perseus, this is the oath you have made," Chronus said. Riptide sprang up and left a shallow cut on my cheek. I didn't even have time to react as the blade flashed past me. I placed my hand to my cheek to feel the cut. I hadn't even felt it as the metal touched my skin. After several seconds, the wound began to sting painfully and I flinched slightly.

"That is so you remember it," Chronus said. "Now, take your weapon, Perseus. Take it so that you might serve Khaos with all of your strength." He held Riptide out to me and I grasped the handle. I marveled at how light the weapon felt now. If possible, it felt even more natural to wield it now than it had before.

"What is this?" I asked as I looked over every centimeter of my new weapon.

"Your old sword was adequate, but you deserve a more fitting weapon to go with your new position," Chronus said. "That blade is no longer Celestial Bronze, but Adamantine. It is the rarest and strongest metal in existence. Few other items have ever been crafted from it."

"Thank you, Chronus," I said and bowed to the primordial god. Chronus chuckled at my display.

"Thank Khaos, Perseus," he said. "He chose to bestow it upon you, I was merely the go-between, the middle man if you will. In any case, we have spent enough time here as it is. There is much to be done and our time to do it is only too limited."

"You said you were going to train me," I reminded him; Chronus' brow furrowed in thought. He nodded slowly, but he still looked troubled.

"Well, not exactly," he said. "Combat is not my forte. But, I will send you to the greatest warriors throughout history so that they might teach you what you must know. You will have other masters besides warriors, but they will come later. When your training as a mortal is complete, then I shall complete it, but that will be some time from now."

"What am I training for exactly?" I asked. He had mentioned a rising evil, but didn't specify what it was. Chronus looked troubled again.

"In time, you will know, Perseus," Chronus said. "All in good time."


	8. Companion

Ch. 8

**Time Lapse: 304 years**

Darkness and silence, those were my world. Riptide was in my hand, ready for action. My ears were straining to catch the faintest noise. There was nothing, not even the wind moved. For now, I waited; then I heard it: footsteps. They came from behind me. Just before they reached me, I turned and lashed out with Riptide. It cut my attacker's blade in half as they tried to defend themselves. I attacked again and felt Riptide sink into flesh. My attacker let out a pained grunt as my sword disabled him. I heard more footsteps coming from my left and my right. I ducked as an unseen blade whistled over my head. I came up again and blocked an attack from the second opponent. I pushed back and the attacker stumbled back. I kicked behind me and found the body of the third attacker. He grunted and stumbled back as well. I listened as my opponents backed off to plan their next attack.

"Stop, that is enough," a voice said. "Perseus, you may remove your blindfold. Your training with me is complete." I smiled and unwound the cloth that was tied around my head. I blinked several times to adjust to the light of the midmorning sun. When I could see again, I turned to my master, Sun Tzu.

"I am truly finished, master?" I asked. The Chinese general smiled softly and nodded.

"Yes, Perseus, even my finest warriors could not defeat you when they had every advantage on their side," Sun Tzu said indicating the three men next to him. One of them, Li Zhao, was clutching his left shoulder to stop it from bleeding. He caught me looking and smiled bitterly.

"Don't worry about it, Perseus," he said. "I've survived worse than this." I chuckled at his comment.

"Like that event in Mongolia two years ago?" I asked. "That was pretty bad." Zhao touched the side of his head where he still bore a long, jagged scar. He winced at the memory.

"Among other things," he responded.

At that moment, the world around us froze. The five of us looked around as all noise vanished from the countryside and things in motion halted. A pillar of sand rose up from the ground beside us and took on the form of an hourglass. When the sand disappeared, a young boy with golden eyes stood in its place. We all bowed to the primordial of time as he made his entrance.

"Lord Chronus," Sun Tzu said. " I take that you are here to retrieve Perseus." Chronus smiled sadly and nodded.

"Yes, I wish that he could remain here longer," Chronus said. "I know he hasn't enjoyed a time period this much since Venice. Right, Perseus?" I smiled as I remembered those years I spent with the Renaissance master, Leonardo do Vinci. He had been one of my favorite mentors over the past three hundred years.

"That is true, master," I confirmed. "But, I have enjoyed my time here as well. It has been an honor to train and fight beside all of you." I bowed to Sun Tzu and his men. They bowed back.

"The honor is our, Perseus," Sun Tzu responded. "Good luck in your future battles. May you find peace and fortune in your life." I smiled and nodded. There were no words left to say. I walked over to Chronus as the sand began to reappear. I waved back at my companions of the last five years as the sands engulfed my master and me.

"Where, or should I say when, are we off to now?" I asked as the sands of time swirled around us. Chronus gave me a knowing smile.

"Wait and see, Perseus," he said. "I think you might like this one." I looked down at the primordial god and waited for him to elaborate. When he didn't, I chose to remain silent.

The sand disappeared after another minute and I was surprised to see Camp Half-Blood. I hadn't been to Chronus' realm in about a hundred years, not since I had nearly died on Sicily during the first Punic War.

"What are we doing here, master?" I asked. "Am I to be trained here this time?" I asked.

"Yes, your next mentor has been brought here," Chronus said. "We have been arranging this for some time, Perseus. My sister was less than thrilled allow her to be here, but she finally gave in."

"Who is my new mentor?" I asked. Chronus didn't answer, but started walking towards the archery range. I followed him after a brief hesitation. As we got closer, I began to hear a bow being released and arrows embedding in the targets. I found this odd considering I had already spent seven years perfecting archery with Genghis Khan and his Mongols. When we finally came in sight of the archery range, I froze with shock. Standing before me, firing arrow after arrow into the bulls-eyes of her targets, was Zoë Nightshade.

"Zoë, I brought you a friend," Chronus called out. Zoë turned and smiled as she saw me. She walked over to us and stopped in front of me.

"Zoë, is this really you?" I asked. She laughed softly at my obvious shock.

"Yes, Percy, it is really me," she said. She looked me up and down for several seconds. "You've have grown. You're are no longer the idiot half-blood that accompanied me to rescue my lady all those years ago."

I glared at Zoë for her comment, but she started laughing and so was I shortly thereafter.

"Regardless, it's good to see you again, Zoë," I said. "But, how are you here? Artemis put in the sky after you died." Zoë turned to Chronus, but he shook his head.

"It is your story to tell, my dear," he said. "I'll leave you two alone for now, give you a chance to catch up." With that, Chronus disappeared into a vortex of sand. I looked at Zoë.

"Well, I guess I shall tell you my tale then," she said. "Walk with me." She began walking off into the forest and I followed beside her.

"I guess I should start with what you know," she began. "Yes, I was bitten and poisoned by Ladon. Yes, my father grievously injured me. Yes, Lady Artemis chose to immortalize me in the heavens. All of this is true, but I did not die. I was near death when Lady Artemis gave me the greatest honour she could bestow, but the Fates had yet to cut my thread. For an unknown amount of time, I existed in between life and death, sometimes drifting into one or the other. I was like this until Chronus came to me. He offered me another chance at life, with the only catch being that I was to train you when the time was right. He negotiated with his sister, Ananke, for my freedom from the prophecy of the quest. After that, Chronus brought me here and I lived here for a few months until now."

By the end of her story, we had reached Zeus' Fist. The area around it had been destroyed during the Battle of the Labyrinth, but now it was restored to its old beauty. Somehow, the sun had gone down and a full moon had risen in the brief time we had been walking. Its silvery light washed the clearing in a soft glow.

"So you're going to train me," it wasn't a question.

"Yes," Zoë responded. "Chronus told me that you had learned archery, so I was at first uncertain as to what I would teach you."

"But you know now," I said. "If Chronus brought you here at all, there must be something important you know that I must learn."

"Many things actually," Chronus said from behind us. Zoë and I turned to see Chronus as an old man leaning heavily on a golden staff. An hourglass rested on the top of the staff.

"Though the hunters of Artemis are renowned archers, it is only one of their many talents," Chronus explained. "At first, the idea was to send you to train with Artemis herself at some point in the past, but that plan had many flaws to it. Bringing Zoë here was a much better solution."

"What exactly will she be teaching me?" I asked. "I've been training for three hundred years with the greatest warriors, thinkers, and artists. No offense, Zoë, but open combat isn't your strongest attribute, right?" Chronus chuckled.

"You're thinking about it all wrong, Perseus," he said. "True, Zoë is not suited for full out combat, but she has other skills that you lack. The hunters of Artemis have a unique skill set, the likes of which can't be found in a single location anywhere else. Though we could waste time sending you to many different places to learn their skills, it would be infinitely simpler and quicker to have a hunter train you."

"Okay, so what are we waiting for?" I asked. Chronus smiled slightly at my enthusiasm.

"Dawn," he said. "Your new training begins as the new sun rises. I hope both of you get sufficient rest." Chronus turned and walked back to the main part of camp.

"So what will I be learning exactly?" I asked Zoë. She shrugged.

"Everything, I suppose," she said. "Though I don't think about it very often, Lady Artemis taught us many things throughout our time in the hunt that seemed, irrelevant at the time. They were useful at times, but we didn't rely on them very much."

Well, it's better to know it and not need it than need it and not know it," I said. Zoë smiled at my words.

"You really have changed, Percy," she said. "Chronus told me a little bit about what you've been doing, but he didn't go into detail. He didn't tell me what made you leave the world behind, either."

"Are you asking?" I had long since lost any bitterness towards the loss of my old life, or the ones responsible for it. Zoë nodded.

"Well, it's pretty complicated, to say the least," I began. "It began with a mission to rescue a half-blood in California. It didn't take that long, but it was long enough that a son of Hecate named Alabaster was able to infiltrate camp and erase everyone's memory of me. When I got back, it was like they didn't know me at all. They were suspicious and things escalated pretty quickly. Before I knew it, I was on my own."

So Chronus cam to you and offered you a place here?" Zoë guessed.

"Not quite, he saved my life after I had to fight the Chimera," I responded. Zoë's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open when I mentioned the Chimera.

"You fought the Chimera, alone?" she asked. "That is a brave feat even for a bearer of the Curse of the Styx."

"Actually, the curse wasn't working," I said. "Chronus said that it was because my mom didn't know me anymore. It technically counted as disowning me and the blessing she gave me didn't count anymore. That nearly cost me my life. I still don't know how I managed to beat it."

"So now you serve Khaos," Zoë summed up. I nodded.

"Yes, I've never met Khaos, and Chronus hasn't talked to me about the creator, but it feels… right, I guess, to be in his service. It's like I'm doing something worthwhile. Most of my mentors know about Khaos and his workings in the world in some way or another, but I've helped them solidify their faith while I trained with them."

"It's must be good to have a clear purpose for your life," Zoë said sadly. "I'm not resentful, Perseus, but as far as I know, I'll return to my place in the sky once I've trained you."

I was surprised to hear Zoë say this. I hadn't considered the idea that she was only alive to train me.

"Why not join us?" I offered. Zoë looked surprised, like that hadn't occurred to her.

"Chronus didn't come to me for me to join," Zoë said. "I am meant to teach you, then… then, I don't know what. But, if Khaos wished for me to join with you all, wouldn't Chronus have asked?"

"Maybe, but you never know with primordials," I responded. "Chronus said that I was chosen because of my potential for greatness, not the greatness I already possessed. If you asked, I'm sure Khaos would accept you." Zoë smiled at my words.

"I'll think about it, but for now, you should get some rest," she said. "Don't think I'll make your training easy just because you're my friend."

I wouldn't dream of it," I said with a smile on my face.

**Time Lapse: 148 years**

Time went by, my training continued across time and under many different mentors. Zoë eventually talked to Chronus about her joining us permanently, and he was happy she had finally asked. She began to accompany me when I went away to learn, and it became increasingly rare that we weren't in each other's company. Despite my better judgment, I found myself attracted to being with her above almost anything else. Don't get me wrong, Zoë was a great friend, the longest I had had in all of my time in Khaos' service, but I was hesitant towards pursuing a romantic relationship; partly because of past events, but also because of Zoë herself. She had been a hunter for nearly two thousand years before her death. Compared to that, a hundred years was almost nothing. Perhaps I did like Zoë as more than just a good friend, but I wasn't going to risk her trust because I followed my heart over my head. That was a lesson Hannibal Barca had drilled into me. Regardless, I couldn't help the way I felt.

"Quit doing that," Zoë said to me.

"Doing what?" I asked in an overly innocent tone. She glared at me.

"You're holding back again," she said. "Stop doing that."

"Zoë, I can say without exaggeration that I am one of the best swordsmen to have ever lived," I said seriously. "If we were immortal, then I might really fight, but I can't risk it. Zoë, I can only hold back against you." Zoë sighed.

"Then at least fight harder," she said. "It's like your not even trying."

I really wasn't trying; Zoë was pretty awful when it came to swordplay, but I wasn't going to say that to her. Give her some hunting knives or a bow, and she would send me home in a body bag. But with a sword, she was hopeless. Then again, I was hopeless at archery at one time.

"Alright, I'll fight harder," I said. Zoë nodded and took a defensive stance. At least form was something that came naturally to her; in fact, many aspects of fighting with a sword came easy to her. The problem was that she used a sword like a hunting knife. Swords were longer, heavier, and slower than her knives, but she insisted on using them the same way.

Without warning, Zoë jumped to the right and stabbed at me with her sword. I barely moved as I effortlessly swatted her blade away. Zoë tried to attack my face, but each of her strikes were clumsy and slow. She made several mistakes that I could have exploited, but chose not to. Finally, I decided to end this before Zoë could yell at me again. When she got too close, I locked our blades together and twisted. Her sword clattered to the ground and Riptide flew to her throat, more from habit than actual need. Zoë sighed and raised her hands in defeat.

"You still weren't fighting that hard," she commented.

"Tell you what, I'll give you my best, if you give me your best," I said. "Zoë, a sword isn't your weapon. Hunting knives are the melee weapon you're accustomed to; maybe you should just focus on those."

"I remember that a bow wasn't your weapon either," she said calmly. "But now you can use it as well as any hunter."

"Touché, Zoë, touché," I said. "But, in my own defense, I had Genghis Khan for a mentor." Zoë smiled at my excuse.

"Well, I had a goddess of the hunt for my mentor, but we're equals when it comes to archery," she said. "You were able to learn the bow in what, seven years? That means that I should be able to learn how to use a sword like that." Zoë snapped her finger for emphasis. I rolled my eyes at her obvious insult.

"Whatever, Zoë," I said lamely. Zoë smiled in triumph.

"Score is: Zoë 78, Percy 3," Chronus said from the entrance of the arena. Zoë laughed at his antics, and even I couldn't hide a smile.

"Hello, Chronus," I said as Zoë and I bowed. "When is my next destination?" Chronus smiled and his golden eyes shined with excitement.

"There will be no more of that," he said. "Your training as a mortal is now over. But, that all was easy compared to what is coming next." I raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"Easy, eh?" I asked. "You call 452 years of near-death training across time and space easy? What could possibly be harder than that?" Chronus smiled widened like he was enjoying this immensely.

"Like I said, your training _as a mortal_ is now over," he repeated. "But, you have yet to truly develop your immortal abilities. From now on, I'll be training you in the growth of your powers as a demigod."

"So, my powers over water?" I clarified.

"Among other things, but this is all preparing you for your audience with Khaos," Chronus said. My eyes widen and my heartbeat all but stopped.

"You mean… I'm going to speak with Khaos?" I asked. Chronus nodded.

"As you are now, you won't be able to withstand the sheer power of Khaos, but with the proper training, you'll finally be able to gain his full blessing."

I was about to ask more questions, but a flash of light and an explosion from behind me cut me off. I turned to see a starburst of light shine in the sky before winking out of existence. I turned to Chronus to see him staring in complete shock at the sky.

"Um, Chronus?" I asked.

"Are you okay, master?" Zoë asked. "What was that?"

"We're out of time," Chronus mumbled. "It's begun."

"Chronus, what's begun?" I asked. "Is it the evil that I've been training to defeat?"

"Both of you must go now," Chronus said. He reached forward and touched my forehead. The next instant, I knew a location and a time to be there.

"Is this where I go?" I asked. Chronus nodded quickly. His expression looked panicked.

"Quickly, you must go before it is too late," he said as the sands of time began to swirl at me and Zoë's feet. "Be careful, Perseus. Your training is not yet complete, but we can pray to Khaos that what you know is sufficient."

So many questions swirled around in my head, but the sands enveloped Zoë and I before I could ask them. When they were gone, Zoë and I were standing on a hill overlooking a battle.


	9. Remembering

Ch. 9

(Annabeth POV)

Ten years might seem like a long time, but it isn't. The events that transpired then are as clear as if they had happened yesterday. I remembered Percy, and how I had unwillingly betrayed him. Though the periods of depression I would occasionally go into had ceased, I had yet to truly get over his death. The other hunters knew that I still loved Percy, but they didn't think any less of me for it; they had a respect for Percy that was uncommon for a boy.

"Annabeth, wake up," Thalia said, interrupting me from my memories. I rolled over in my sheets and looked at my friend. She was in the entrance to my tent with her traveling clothes on and a bow in hand. The moonlight shined off the silver of her lieutenant's circlet. I was surprised that the sun wasn't up yet.

"What time is it?" I mumbled sleepily. My recent dreams hadn't afforded me much sleep, so I wasn't eager to get up too early.

"4 o'clock," Thalia answered. The only things that had us up that early were an attack, or…

"We're moving," I guessed. Thalia nodded. "Where are we going?" I asked as all thoughts of sleep left.

"We're going back to camp, Annabeth," Thalia said. "We're going back for the anniversary." I stopped moving. I hadn't returned to camp since Percy… since he died. I had been told that the campers understood why I had left them and didn't hate me, but I still didn't know how I would face them.

"Okay, I'll be ready in a few minutes," I said. Thalia nodded and backed out of the tent.

It actually took a little under a few minutes for everyone to get ready to leave. Our camp was disassembled and packed away in record time and we were on our way long before the sun rose. Throughout our trip, the other hunters kept glancing at me nervously. I pretended to ignore them. Thalia fell into step beside me.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

Of course, why wouldn't I be?" I said, but we both knew I was lying.

"Annabeth, don't lie to me," Thalia said. "I know that you're still upset about what happened. But, it's in the past. Percy wouldn't want you to dwell on his death."

"I know, Thalia," I said. "It's just… I don't know if I can face them. I haven't even spoken to any of them since I join all of you. Chiron, Clarisse, they might all hate me."

"Come on, Annabeth, they won't hate you," Thalia assured me. "Artemis talked to Chiron and explained everything to the campers. From what she says, they understood and didn't hate you for your choice."

"Still…" I mumbled.

"It'll be fine, Annabeth," she urged. "Worst case scenario, we beat them during capture the flag again." I smiled slightly at Thalia's unique logic.

"Maybe you're right," I said. Thalia laughed.

"There's no maybe about it," she said confidently. "Now come on, we're falling behind.

Over the next two days, we made our way to New York and Camp Half-Blood. We crossed over Half-Blood Hill on the morning of the third day. We weren't very surprised to find the campers at the dining pavilion when we arrived. Only Argus was in front of the Big House waiting for us. He bowed to Artemis and nodded to the other hunters. Many of the hunters returned his nod while our newest recruit stared in amazement at his many eyes. Her name was Amelia; she was a mortal who had joined us a few weeks ago. She was still getting used to everything that was happening. The sound of hooves drew our attention to towards the dining pavilion as Chiron cantered towards us.

"Lady Artemis, it's good that you've finally arrived," Chiron said with a bow. "The campers aren't very happy about missing capture the flag yesterday. But, I wanted them all ready for the match with your hunters."

"No apology is needed, Chiron," Artemis said. "I expect nothing less than your campers' best against my hunters. I assume the game is still scheduled for this evening."

"Yes, and if you'd like, breakfast isn't over," Chiron said. "The hunters are more than welcome to sit in with us."

"Thank you, but we've already had breakfast," Artemis said. "I think we'll just get settled into Cabin 8. Thalia, lead the way." Thalia nodded and walked towards the designated cabin with the other hunters behind her. I was about to follow her, but Artemis stopped me.

"Annabeth, it isn't wise to run from your past," she said. "I won't force it upon you, but I don't think you should delay things any longer."

I did want to delay this for as long as possible, but I nodded to the goddess.

"I will, my lady," I said steadily, but on the inside, I was panicking.

Artemis nodded and walked off to join the other hunters. I took a deep breath before turning to face Chiron. He didn't say anything and we just stood there silently for what felt like years. Chiron broke the silence by closing the distance to me.

"Chiron, I—" Chiron interrupted me by leaning down and hugging me. I was surprised, but wrapped my arms around my mentor.

"I have missed you, Annabeth," Chiron said. "When I heard about Percy, it was hard, but it was worse when you disappeared too."

"I'm sorry, Chiron," I said. "I was just… I needed to get away from it all. I thought that the hunters could help me. They did, but this will always be my home."

"Do not apologize, child, we were all hurt by Percy's passing; and ashamed of our roles in it," Chiron said. "The others bear you no ill will for what you did, but they would have preferred you speak to them first."

"Can I speak with them?" I asked tentatively. Chiron smiled softly.

"When they heard you were coming, they all assembled in the Big House," he explained. "They want to speak with you, Annabeth, and they have been waiting for a very long time." I nodded and wiped away my tears. Chiron led me to the door of the Big House and gently pushed me in. he nodded and walked back to the dining pavilion. I steeled my nerves and walked towards the Rec room. When I arrived, I heard murmurs of conversation on the other side of the door. I couldn't make out any words, but there were obviously several people inside. I took one last shaky breath before knocking softly on the door. The noise vanished. The knob turned and the door swung inward to reveal my brother, Malcolm standing right in front of me. He had grown, but then again, ten years is a long time.

"Annabeth," he said softly. "Come in."

I entered the room and saw the counselors seated in a circle around a large oak table. Apparently they had gotten rid of the ping-pong table. Among those gathered, I saw many familiar, but slightly older, faces. At the head of the table sat Clarisse. She had an eye patch over her left eye. I had heard about that attack. It had been almost a year ago. Though I had never heard any details about it, Clarisse had lost both her eye and Chris in the attack. To her right was Shawn, he had grown as well and I could see the hilt of a sword over the table. To Clarisse's left sat a beautiful girl with long black hair and silver eyes. She stared at me unwaveringly with an odd curiosity. For several minutes, the campers just stared at me, not knowing what to do.

"Been a while, hasn't it, owl head?" Clarisse said, breaking the awkward silence.

"Ten years to be exact," I said. Clarisse chuckled as if my answer amused her.

"Still a know-it-all, I see," she said. "At least some things haven't changed. Well, how has time with the hunters been treating you? I see that aging hasn't been much of a concern." I sighed.

"Look, Clarisse, everyone, when Percy d-died, I was a wreck," I said. "I didn't know what to do, but I couldn't come back here. So, I turned to Artemis. Over the past ten years, she and the hunters have helped me come to terms with what happened ten years ago. I'm sorry for abandoning you guys, but I couldn't think of what else to do."

"There's no need to apologize, Annabeth," Shawn said. "We were sad that Percy died, ashamed that we forced him from camp, and angry that you just left, but that was the past. When Artemis explained everything to Chiron, it took some of us longer to cool down than others, but we all came to accept your decision." I looked around at the assembled faces and saw them all nodding in agreement, all except the girl with silver eyes. She was still just staring at me.

"None of you hate me, really?" I asked. Clarisse rolled her eyes.

"Do you want us to hate you, Annabeth," she said. "Because I think it's already pretty damn clear that we don't." A few of the campers chuckled. I smiled slightly.

"Thank you, all of you," I said. Clarisse held up her hand.

"Don't thank us yet, girly," she said. "We're still going to end the hunters' winning streak tonight. If that means we have to knock you senseless, so be it." I smiled truly now.

"We'll see about that Clarisse," I said. The daughter of Ares looked happy that I was acting like I had ten years ago.

"Alright then, meeting over, go about your business," she said to the campers. They all stood up and filed out of the room, except for Clarisse, Shawn, and the girl.

"Go," Clarisse said to the two. Shawn rose and left the room. The girl didn't move at first, but rose and walked out without a word. Clarisse's eye followed her out of the room.

"Who was that?" I asked. Clarisse's look darkened.

"That was Arianna Veil," she said. "She's the only unclaimed camper here."

"Unclaimed?" I asked. "But that's impossible. Percy made the gods promise to claim their children."

"I know, but she's been here for en years and has remained unclaimed the entire time," Clarisse explained. "I'm not trying to influence you before you meet her or anything, but I don't trust her."

"What's wrong with her?" I knew that while Clarisse was hostile towards just about everybody, she was very forward with it. The way she made it sound, she had kept her suspicions to herself.

"Nothing really," Clarisse said. "But, I just have this feeling. Almost everybody at camp likes her, especially the boys, and she's seems like a very nice person. But, she's also very mysterious. She would sometimes disappear for days at a time and reappear like nothing happened. I'm just saying, Annabeth, keep an eye on her. She's one of the best warriors here. Only myself and Shaun have been able to beat her in a fight."

"I'll keep that in mind," I said. I looked out the window and saw the girl in question, Arianna, leaning against the Hermes Cabin. Though I couldn't be sure, she seemed to be staring straight at me. Even from that distance, I could feel her silver eyes boring into me.

Hours later, the hunters and campers had gathered together for the traditional Capture the Flag game. The campers were obviously pumped up about the event, and the hunters were as well, but we were more confident that the campers appeared to be. Lady Artemis had returned to Olympus. She said that there was a special meeting that she was required to attend. Hopefully, she would be back by the end of the match.

"Attention, the rules are as follows," Chiron said. "No killing, keep maiming to a minimum, all magical items are allowed, and the creek shall act as a boundary. I will serve as a referee and battlefield medic. If both sides are ready, let the match begin."

The hunters and I rushed into the woods with the campers right behind us. There was a ten-minute grace period for everyone to get into position before the match truly began.

"Remember the plan, Annabeth," Thalia said. I rolled my eyes.

"I will, Thals," I assured her. "I came up with it after all." Thalia glared at me, but the conch horn sounded in the distance and she had to run off to join the attack group.

"Just do it," she called back to me.

"Alright, lets go," I said to my group. Phoebe and another girl would be helping me circle around and capture the campers' flag as discretely as possible.

Things began well enough. We made it over the creek and half way through the woods before we saw any campers; it was Shawn. He was patrolling the area with the Stolls. They came very close to finding us, but action closer to the center drew them away. We continued on our way.

When we finally found the campers' flag, I was surprised that there was only one person defending it. Clarisse stood calmly in front of the flag with her helmet in the crook of her arm and her only apparent weapon being a small knife at her belt.

"I'm glad to see that the campers weren't too much for you, Annabeth," Clarisse said. "I wanted to test you myself."

I knew that Clarisse was a good warrior, one of the best, but she seemed overly confident. I didn't think that even she was arrogant enough to underestimate 5 hunters.

"Don't worry, Clarisse, you'll get your fight," I replied. Clarisse grinned evilly and put on her boar shaped helmet. Then, she pulled out her bronze knife and spun it a few times before it transformed into a spear. The head of the spear crackled with electricity.

"We'll, what're you waiting for?" Clarisse taunted. In answer, Phoebe stepped forward and unsheathed her sword.

"I'll handle this one," she said without taking her eyes off Clarisse.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes as she analyzed the daughter of Ares before her. I could already tell that Clarisse's only flaw in defense would be her left side where her eye patch impaired her vision. Phoebe must have come to the same conclusion, because she began to circle around to Clarisse's left. Clarisse smiled and began walking to the right, still facing Phoebe. The two stopped after several seconds and just watched each other; the air was thick with tension.

The hunter beside me moved her foot and a branch snapped. Almost like it was a signal, the two girls leapt into action. Phoebe jumped to Clarisse's left to stay in her blind stop, but a lightning fast stab by Clarisse's spear caused her to jump back.

Clarisse followed up with a stab at Phoebe's sword arm. Phoebe dodged to the side, but Clarisse swung her spear to follow her and Phoebe had to block with her sword. Phoebe dodged another jab from the spear and slashed at Clarisse's head. Clarisse blocked and shoved Phoebe back with enough force that she stumbled back several steps. Clarisse didn't give Phoebe a chance to recover. She ran forward and spun hers pear as she went. Her weapon transformed into a short club, which she slammed into Phoebe's head. My friend and comrade hit the ground, unconscious.

I stared in amazement at how quickly Clarisse had beaten Phoebe. Second to Thalia, she was our best hand-to-hand combatant.

"Enough warm-ups, Annabeth," Clarisse said. "Show me what you've learned from Artemis."

I was about to respond when something fell from the trees and landed behind Clarisse. I tried to warn my old friend, but I was too late. A bronze blade stabbed Clarisse in the back an came out of her the other end covered in red liquid. Clarisse gasped in shock and looked down at the glistening blade. The sword was twisted sharply and Clarisse cried out in agony. Over Clarisse's shoulder, I saw a pair of glowing silver eyes staring at me menacingly.

Arianna's arm reached around Clarisse and took her club from her weak grip. She twirled the weapon and it returned to its original form of a knife. I watched horror as Arianna slit Clarisse's throat with her own weapon. Clarisse's body fell to the ground and became still.

"You... you killed your own comrade," the hunter beside me said in horror. Arianna grinned evilly at us.

"Please, that bitch had it coming," she said calmly. "I could've killed her sooner, but I had never had a perfect opportunity, until now. I should thank you for your help, but I think I'll just kill you instead."

As she finished, a ball of flame materialized in her hand and she threw it at us before we could react. The fireball exploded into the hunter beside me and I jumped away to avoid being burned. I watch in disbelief and horror as my sister was burned alive. Her screams tore through the night air.

I tried to get to my feet and run for help, but I couldn't move. My heart hammered in my chest and I began to panic as my body rose into the air. Arianna walked into my line of sight with her hand extended towards me and a smile on her face.

"I expected more from someone with your reputation, Ms. Chase," Arianna said. "But, then again, you are just a half-blood. Goodbye, Ms. Chase."

Arianna twirled her knife and it transformed into a spear. She leveled the spear at my heart and would have killed me, but a figure detached itself from the shadows and slammed into Arianna's side. I fell to the ground as the new arrival battled Arianna for control of the spear. Upon closer inspection, I saw that my rescuer was Nico. I couldn't make out many details, but he had obviously grown since I had seen him last. I tried to rise and help, but a pain in the back of my head forced me back on the ground. I could only watch the fight before helplessly.

Despite being surprised, Arianna quickly regained control of the situation. She kicked Nico off of her and jumped to her feet. She tried to stab him while he was down, but Nico vanished into the shadows. He reappeared behind her and Arianna barely managed to block the blade of his sword. She tried to counterattack, but Nico disappeared again. Arianna ducked as Nico's blade appeared behind her and almost killed her. She spun around and knocked the son of Hades of his feet with her spear, but Nico disappeared again before she could truly attack.

That is when things changed. Arianna spun around and twirled her spear like it was a baton. It transformed into a sword, which she stabbed into what appeared to be nothing. Unfortunately, Nico chose that moment to appear in that exact spot. By the hand of the fates, the blade only stabbed Nico in the shoulder of his left arm, but it wasn't much relief. Nico cried out in pain from the unexpected attack. Arianna twisted the sword and Nico's pain increased. Just as I thought things couldn't get worse for my friend, Arianna jerked the sword up sharply and completely severed Nico's left arm from his body. I watched numbly as Nico's arm fell to the ground, his fingers still twitching. Arianna kicked Nico in the back and he fell to the ground.

"Let this be a message to your father," she said to Nico's prone form. "I'm beyond his power. No matter how much he tries, no matter how many lives are lost, he will not have me." She kicked Nico in the side for good measure. Then, she turned he evil gaze to me. She walked over to me slowly and raised her hand again. I rose with it until I was suspended in the air before her.

"You're my insurance," she said. "If di Angelo dies, you'll act as my messenger. Tell whomever you want to of what has happened here, chase after me if you must. Try to kill me. I don't need an answer, Ms. Chase. I know you'll tell them. Goodbye for now. I hope we see each other again."

At the end of her dialogue, she made a shoving action with her hand and I flew back into a tree. The impact almost caused me to black out. Through the pain, I looked up in time to see Arianna step into a shadow and disappear. Then the pain took me and my world dissolved into blackness.

**A.N: All credit due to Anonemuss14 as the last 9 chapters have been solely her work. I plan to jump in a bit next chapter and from then on but only to add where I think I can. I have no plans to change the masterpiece she had started and will do my best to pick up where she left off.**

**(Sorry for the delay, busy schedule and busy life)**


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